Feuded Love
by Leo-Blazer
Summary: What if being apart, only pushed you closer together? Zangoose/Seviper Pairing aka Feudshipping. Rated teen for violence. :Final Chapter uploaded!:
1. An unusual friendship

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. The title of this fic was borrowed from an image on Deviant art by Ethice.**

The forest remained quiet as the young Zangoose walked through it. Being so young, he didn't have the red markings, or the viciously sharp claws and teeth as adult Zangoose, which makes you wonder why he was walking alone in the forest, when danger could be lurking right around the...

A nearby bush rustles, causing him to freeze. He's about to turn around and see what had caused the noise, when something long and black suddenly leapt out, surprising him. Before he could react, the black serpent had coiled itself around him, holding him to the spot. The Seviper looked at its prey, before…licking him with her long forked tongue. The young Zangoose started to laugh as he was tickled.

"Stop it…" He tried to say through his laughing, "You know I'm ticklish!"

"Ya…" said the female serpent, "But what's the magic word?"

"Ok, ok, ok! You win!" As those words left his mouth, the Seviper ceased tickling the little guy, before looking at him with a smug look on her face.

"Now, was that so hard, Aaron?"

"Actually it was. Now can you please let me go, Silvia?"

The Seviper known as Silvia nodded to him as she released him from her coils. As he climbed out, he looked up at his best friend. Ordinarily, you would never see a Zangoose and a Seviper occupying the same space without fighting, let alone playing as these two were.

For as far back as anyone could remember, the two had been mortal enemies, always fighting. The two Pokemon had fought for so long, that no one, not even the oldest of them, knew why they were fighting. Their were many stories between the two to explain why they fought, but each one only blamed the other, saying that they had done something wrong in the past. Never the less, Zangoose and Seviper were mortal enemies.

Except for two: Aaron and Silvia. The two had been friends for several years now, always meeting in secret and playing games such as tag. Both were very young, and both lacking the markings and abilities that their older counterparts possessed.

Aaron's fur was solid white, as Silvia's scales were solid black. Aaron only had small stubs for claws, while the blade on Silvia's tail was so small and dull; you couldn't even call it a blade.

"Well, that makes me with 5 wins to your 2. Wanna make it an even six?"

"Actually, I think it's about time we headed home."

"What, the big scary Zangoose afraid of losing to little old me?"

"Hardly, it's just that I don't want a repeat of what happened last time we were both late getting home. Remember?"

"Oh ya…we were both grounded for a week because of that. You know what's actually funny?"

"What?"

"That for being enemies and being on opposite sides of the forest, both our parents act and think almost identically. It's kinda creepy…"

"Ya, that is pretty creepy." They both remained silent for a minute, before bursting out laughing. This went on for a few more minutes before they stopped. Once it was over, they both headed their separate ways.

After a few more minutes, Aaron had reached the edge of the camp. He called it that because it was just a small area, filled with several leave and bark huts, not what you'd call a village our town. Trying to be as quiet as possible, he crept towards his house. He was almost there when…

"Hey short stuff!" Yelled a voice from behind him before lifting him up by his tail. Aaron groaned as he looked at the face of his older brother, Zack. Zack had become an adult several months ago, gaining claws and new-found powers, which he spent every minute of the day trying to test on his younger brother.

"What cha doing out in the forest by yourself? You could get hurt, there being so many monsters in that forest."

"Hardly." He responded, "The only monster I see is standing right infront of me."

This easily tempered his brother, which he was known for thoughout the entire camp. Anything could set him off, even someone just lightly nudging him. Still gripping Aaron by his tail, he sneered at him.

"Oh really. Well then, you wanna see how much of a monster I can be?" He said as he raised up his right claw, ready to inflict some torment on his baby brother. But before he could do anything, they both saw the shadow of someone standing before them. They both turned, and Zack's ears drooped in fear as he saw who it was.

Their stood their mom, Elaina, one of the toughest Zangoose in the entire camp. She was also the only one that Zack actually feared. She had her arms crossed across her chest, showing that she was mad with one of them.

"Zackary! How many times have I told you to not pick on your little brother?" She only called Zack bhis full name when she was angry with him.

"But…I was just…he was…"

"No buts! Now let Aaron go before I really start to get angry!"

Not wanting to back up his mom's threat, Zack took one last glare at Aaron before placing him back down and walking off. When he was gone, Elaina walked over to her youngest son.

"That should take care of him for the rest of the day."

"But mom, why can't you just stop him from picking on me entirely?"

"Because Aaron, you have to learn how to defend yourself. If you don't learn, you won't be ready when you encounter an enraged Seviper."

"Ya…" Aaron responded meekly, knowing what it was already like to meet a Seviper, except not one that was enraged. Not wanting to continue this conversation, he excused himself to his room, his personal hut attached to the main hut. As he walked into the house, he passed his dad who was chatting with some of his hunting buddies. Ignoring him, he walked into his room, shutting the door behind him.

Flopping down on his bed, he stared up at ceiling as he found himself think back to Silvia. From what they had talked about over the time they had known each other, Silvia didn't have any siblings. It was just her and her mother (Her dad left years ago for someone he said was better). As he thought of that, he found himself remembering the first time he had met Silvia. It was at least two years ago…

_It was a regular day. His mom and dad were out hunting, and Zack was running around being a jerk as usual. So Aaron was home alone, bored. He was so bored, that he decided to do something that he wasn't suppose to. He was going to go into the forest. _

_Both his mom and dad had told him time and time again to not go into the forest, being that it were filled with many dangerous Pokemon, the most dangerous of them being those savage Seviper. But boredom overrode his common sense, and within minutes, he had made his way into the forest. _

"_I don't know why they won't let me come out here," he muttered to himself. "There's probably nothing dangerous out…"_

_He stopped as he heard leaves rustling to his right. Looking over, he noticed a near by bush starting to shake. Slightly afraid, but also curious he slowly started to step towards the shaking bush. Parting the leaves with his paws, he immediately came face to face with a Seviper. For a few seconds, neither of them did anything, before they both leapt back from shock._

"_Your one of those savage Sevipers!" Screamed Aaron._

"_Your one to talk you blood-crazed Zangoose!" Yelled the female snake back._

"_Who you calling blood crazed!" At his outburst, the pitch black serpent started to laugh._

" _Won't my mom be happy when I bring you back? She might even forget that I was out here while she was away!"_

"_Funny," He said with a smirk, "That's exactly what I was going to say."_

_Without another word, they both pounced on one another. They were a tangled mess of fur and scales as they tried to claw the others eyes out. Aaron was trying hard not to get tangled in his opponents long tail as the Seviper tried to avoid Aaron's flailing arms and legs._

_They continued for this for several minutes, neither of them seeming to have the upper hand. They were so preoccupied with each other, that the didn't notice the blanket of leaves right infront of them, until they had rolled ontop of it, collapsing under their combined weight, both of them plummeting into a previously constructed pit. _

_Aaron let out a scream as he tried to grab onto something. Feeling something brush against his hand, he immediately grabbed it, suddenly stopping. As he stopped, he thought he heard someone grunt. Looking up, he realised that he was holding onto to the Seviper's tail, who had grabbed onto a random rock just as they had plummeted._

"_Lhet go!" He heard the snake say with the rock in her mouth. _

"_No way!" He yelled back at her. "There's no way I'm letting go!"_

"_I canth climb upth with you holding on!" _

"_Well then…" he said as he gripped even tighter. Using her like a rope, he then started to climb up her, slowly reaching the top. Using her head as a stand, he was able to pull himself back. Once he was back up, he raced off back to the camp, ready to tell the others about what he had done. _

_As he ran off, he heard her yell, "Help me! Someone please help me!" from within the pit. For some strange reason, her yelling for help suddenly stopped him in his tracks. He didn't know (and he still doesn't know why), but at that moment, he turned around and raced back to the pit._

_The Seviper glared at him as he reappeared at the edge of the pit._

"_What do you want?"_

_Ignoring her, he crouched down and reached his hand out to her._

"_Grab my hand!" As he said this, he saw a confused look appear on her face. Not wanting to refuse his help, though still confused, she started to swing her tail back and forth, trying to swing it up. After a few more seconds, her tail came flying out of the pit, which Aaron quickly grabbed in both hands. Pulling with all his might, he was able to get her above the pit. As she let go of the rock she was gripping onto, the resulting force sending them both tumbling back, landing in a heap._

_Aaron slowly sat up, his head slightly hurting from the tumble he just took. _

"_Why did you come back and help me?" He turned around as he heard the sound of the Seviper speaking behind him. He felt strange talking to someone who was suppose to be his enemy, but he answered anyway. _

"_To be honest, I don't know why I came back. I just had a feeling and I went with it. Besides, why are you even asking me a question like that? You were in trouble, so I helped." _

"_Hmm. I was told that all Zangoose are crazy and that they would help anyone, not even their own kind. But you came back and saved me, of all people."_

"_And I was told that you were savage and would attack anyone once their back was turned. But I've been sitting here for a few good minutes, and you haven't even tried to attack me."_

"_I guess both of us aren't what we thought." The Seviper grew silent as she started to think this over. After a few moments of silence, Aaron spoke up._

"_By the way, what's your name?"_

_The Seviper looked at him for a few seconds, seeming to contemplate his question or thinking of whether to answer him or not._

"_It's Silvia." She finally answered._

"_Well Silvia, I'm Aaron." He held out his hand, a simple gesture. She just started at it, before reaching her tail over and shaking his hand. As they shook, they both heard voices and footsteps in the distance._

"_We should go." Suggested Silvia._

"_Agreed." Was all he said as they both got up and raced off deeper into the forest. _

From that moment on, their friendship continued to grow. It started off with them meeting every so often to talk, which then turned into them meeting almost every other day to hang out and have fun. From there…He stopped as he thought about that.

Getting up from his bed, he walked over to the far side of his room. Grabbing a plank of wood on the wall, he pulled it back, revealing a stone box sticking in the wall. Pulling the box from the wall, he slowly opened it up, looking down at the two gold bands sitting inside.

A few months ago, Aaron had found these bands on an old human's dress he had pulled from old tree. He had been planning on giving one to Silvia as a gift, but he always felt strange when he was about to give it to her. He felt like he was giving something to more then just a friend, but a…

He was startled when he heard the sound of knocking on his door. Quickly placing the lid back on the box, he slid it back in the wall and covered it up. As he did this, he heard his father's voice from behind the door.

"Can I come in?"

"Sure." Was all Aaron said before his dad walked in. His dad was a rather fit Zangoose, the best hunter in his squad and one of the best in the camp. He had taken a poison tail to the eye several years ago, causing him to lose his left eye.

"Hey son. Your mom told me that you've been getting in trouble with your brother over the last few days. Is something the matter?"

"Well…It's…it's just that…you and mom are some of the best in the whole camp. Everyone knows that Zack is a jerk, so they all expect things from me. Zack has his powers and all I have is nothing!"

His dad smiled as he prepared to talk. "Well, you'll be happy to know that it won't be like that for much longer."

Aaron looked up at his dad, confused. "I don't understand."

"In a few days, you'll go through the same thing your brother did."

"You mean…"

"Yep. Think about that." That was all he said as he left the room, closing the door behind him. This left Aaron to think of what his dad had told him.

_A few days and I'll be as powerful as Zack is? That means that I'd be able to go hunting with dad. Hunting wild game and…_ He stood up as he realised what that meant.

"Oh-no. I have to talk to Silvia!" Getting up from his bed, he walked over to one of his walls and opened up another compartment, revealing some handmade parchment and ink made from berry juice. Him and Silvia made the ink so that they could send messages between each other.

Taking the inkwell, he dipped one of his claws into it, making sure the tip was covered. Using the wall as a hard surface, he quickly scrawled something on the paper, before rolling it up. Walking over to the window on the far side of his room, he lifted his right paw to his mouth and whistled. Hearing the sound of wings flapping, he saw Lark land on his window.

Lark was a Tailow that Silvia and him had saved from an Ariados web at least a year ago. For saving his life, Lark had promised two things: 1: That he would keep the secret about them meeting and 2: That he would send messages between the two when possible.

"What you need?" He squawked at Aaron as he landed.

"Bring this to Silvia and make it fast." Was all he said as he handed him the note. Grabbing the note in his talons, he squawked once again before flying off. As he saw him fly off, he silently wished that the note would reach her in time, as time was something that was against him.

**End Chapter**


	2. The Marking

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.**

Silvia looked up as the sound of wings flapping neared her window. The Seviper's camp was slightly different from the Zangoose's. Most of their camps were tunnels dug deep into the ground, with small opening peeking slightly above, which included the top half of Silvia's room. Moments later, Lark flew through, landing on a plank of wood she used as a table.

"Hey Lark. Good to see you."

"Hey Silvia. I got a letter from Aaron. He sounded urgent." Holding it up, she plucked it from his open talon with her tail. With his job done, Lark got up and flew back out her window, returning to the tree he was taking a nap in.

Laying the note on her table, she used the tip of her tail to unroll it. Aaron's writing was rather sloppy, like he had made the note fast. Written on it was a short message, only a few lines long, which read:

"_Silvia, when night falls, meet me in the usual spot. __I have to talk to you about something important."_

_-Aaron _

Silvia reread the note a second time. The usual spot was a deep part of the forest near the centre. Not many Pokemon came near it, and they had already planned escape routes if they needed to escape fast. They both knew what would happen if they were to be discovered…

But what confused her was that he wanted to meet her at night. They almost never travelled out a night, for fear of someone discovering them.

"Whatever he wants to talk about must be that important to risk being seen…"

* * *

Once night had fallen, Silvia waited for everyone else to fall asleep before she quietly sneak out her window and headed for the usual spot. She had taken the route so many times over the past, that she could now get there with her eyes closed, so the dark wasn't bothering her.

Aaron was already waiting there when she arrived, sitting on a nearby stump. He hadn't seen her yet because her black scales blended in with the darkness of the night. Silently slithering up next to him, she leaned even closer to him, her head next to his ear.

"Tired of waiting?" He literaly nearly leapt out of his skin as she suddenly spoke, falling off the stump he was sitting on. She started laughing as he got back up.

"That is not funny!"

"Sorry, I couldn't resist. Surprising you never get's old!"

"Sigh…I'm just glad you were able to come out here."

"That reminds me. What is so important that we needed to meet in the middle of the night?"

Aaron grew silent as she asked this question. He seemed afraid to ask, but eventually, he spoke.

"Silvia…we've been friends for a long time right?"

Silvia was confused by his question.

"Ya…several years now."

"…And we'll continue to be friends for years to come right?"

"Aaron…your not making any sense. What did you really call me out here to talk about?"

He once again grew silent as he tried to think of how to tell her.

"I had a talk with my dad after we left. He said that in a few days, I could go through the same thing my brother did."

Silvia quickly realised what he was talking about.

"You mean…"

"Yes. I'm talking about The Marking."

No one knew how the actual rivalry between Zangoose and Seviper started. But there was something that everyone knew. That the ones who started it had fought for one last time. To the death.

The battle raged on for several days, neither giving the other even an inch .Over the course of which, several different wounds had been given to both fighters, red blood staining the Zangooses fur, while the Sevipers black and gold painted scales were colored purple by it's blood. After a long and tiring battle, it all ended in one swift moment, both rivals dealing a deathblow to the other.

Since then, all Seviper and Zangoose go through a change when they become an adult. Over the course of three days, they would rapidly grow in size, growing up to twice or three times their original size. Zangoose would loose all their fur, while Seviper would shed their old skin, both would grow back with the same markings as the wounds inflicted by their ancestors. Needless to say…it wasn't a very pleasant process. Aaron had been unable to sleep because of his brother screaming and thrashing around.

"When that happens, I'll gain my claws and start going on hunting missions with dad."

"So?"

"So…when that happens, we will no longer be able to meet. We'll cease to being friends."

"Wow…I never thought of that."

"And that's not the worst part. Game isn't the only thing we hunt. We also hunt…our enemies. Seviper…like you."

Silvia grew quiet as she realised why he was so worried. She too could go through the Marking at any time. If that happened, they would go from best friends, to worst enemies. That was something that neither of them wanted.

Trying to cheer up her friend, she started to coil around him, her form of a hug. He looked up at her as her scales touched the back of his neck, her head appearing next to his.

"Look, no matter what will happen, you and I will still be friends. Even if we have to fight against one another, it'll just be like the games we used to play."

"Ya…I guess." Even though he was still worried about what was about to happen, hearing her say that seemed to put him at ease a little. He smiled at her as his worries started to disappear.

"Well, I'd better get back before someone realises I'm gone." Uncoiling from around him, she started to head back.

"Wait!" She stopped and turned around as he called to her.

"Before you go, I…I have something to give to you." Reaching behind him, he pulled out the stone box he had kept in his room. She slithered over to him as he opened it, revealing the two gold bands inside.

"They're…beautiful."

Reaching into the box, he pulled out one of the rings and handed it to her. She let it slip onto her tail, hanging loosely against her scales. Aaron then grabbed the other one and placed it on his arm, this one hanging loosely as well.

"This way, even if we must part ways, we will always have something to remember each other by."

"Oh Aaron…thank you." Before he even knew what was happening, she reached over and planted a kiss on his cheek. He felt his face get warm as he started to blush.

"I…I…" He tried to say something, but he only started to stammer. But by the time he had regained himself, Silvia was already gone.

* * *

Two days later, Aaron awoke with a huge fever. Everything seemed to swim around him as he tried to focus, but that only made it worse. Over the next few hours, his fever continued to get worse. Along with that, his body temperature started to rise. It felt like his skin was on fire!

His mother frequently came in to check on him. On one such instance, she came it to see his left arm was hanging off the side of his mat. But that wasn't the only thing. His arm was also completely devoid of any fur, falling into a pile underneath. It seemed to by travelling up his arm, the fur around his shoulder slowly shedding from his body.

She took one look at it, before immediately leaving the room. Through his fever, Aaron heard voices from outside his door. He couldn't make out most of what they said, but there was one thing he heard as clear as day. It was his mom say,

"It is time. The Marking has begun."

* * *

At around the same time, Silvia was preparing to write another letter for Aaron. She was going to ask if they were able to hang out again and to thank him again for the gold band she was still wearing. She had already gotten out the ink and paper and was just dipping her tail in the inkwell…

Suddenly, a tremor seemed to shoot through her entire body. Her whole body shook, causing her to knock over the inkwell, berry juice spilling on the floor. But that was the least of her problems, as pain suddenly shot through her body, coming from everywhere. She started to trash around, her tail knocking over her desk with a loud thump.

Her mother rushed in because of the loud noise, to see her daughter convulsing on the floor. Motherly instincts kicking in, she rushed over to her daughter, worried for her.

"Silvia honey, are you alright? What's wrong?"

All she got was a scream for an answer, as Silvia's tail swung out and almost hit her in the head. Hearing the screaming, several hunter Seviper rushed to see what was wrong. They heard Silvia's mother yell, "Please! Someone help my Silvia!" as they entered, quickly slithering into her room. Upon entering, they saw Silvia violently thrashing around, her tail having already made several marks in the wall.

They immediately knew what was happening. The leader pointed to his two men. "You two, restrain her! Try and keep her from causing any more damage to herself!" Acting fast, the two hunters rushed Silvia, using their large tails to hold her down. She continued to move around, but she was held fast to the mat.

Her mother was on the verge of a panic attack from worry.

"What's wrong if her? Is she going to be alright?"

The lead hunter slithered over to her and looked her right in the eye before saying, "It is time. The Marking has begun."

**2****nd**** Day…**

The second day was even worse then the first. Just as Aaron's fever broke, pain shot through his whole body. He sat upright, screaming as it felt like his insides were rearranging themselves. Most of his fur was gone by this point, revealing the gold band still on his right arm.

His paws were clutching his head, eyes shut from the pain. Had he had his eyes open, he would of seen his paws slowly getting bigger, as the bones inside of them suddenly started growing. He then began to thrash about, soon rolling off his bed and hitting the floor with a thud. He continued to convulse, twitching uncontrollably on the floor.

Somehow able to remain conscious through the pain, his now open eyes fell on the band still on his arm. That made him think of Silvia, his best friend. Even through all his pain, he silently wished that she was alright.

* * *

Silvia was far from alright. She had stopped thrashing around, lying now on her bed. Her mother had long since left the room by this point. Parents were unable to come near their children during the second and third days, even though many of them were worried sick.

As she lay there, cracks started to run up her scaly body. Every so often, a patch would fall off, sometimes revealing a now golden patch of scales. Silvia was unable to move during the process, her body immobilised by the hardened and cracking scales surrounding her. She could do nothing but lay there as she continued to shed her skin.

Like her friend, she gazed up at the golden band still holding on to her growing body. Aaron had said that something like this would happen to him in a few days, she just wished he wasn't suffering.

**3****rd**** Day…**

The third day was by far the worst. Unable to get up from his pain, Aaron was still lying on the floor. He had grown a considerable amount over the last couple of hours, now being at least twice his original size. Once again, his skin felt like it was on fire, as fur grew back all over his body.

But it didn't end there. As the fur grew back, several streaks seemed to be slowly advancing across his body, turning several patches of his fur red. Trying to get up, he was only able to get on all fours, as the pain became almost unbearable.

At the same time, he felt a pain in his mouth, as new teeth grew in, sharp, deadly and vicious looking teeth. Once that was done, he looked down at his front paws to see that his claws were growing as well, becoming two huge purple spikes on his paws.

"_The same colour as those vile Seviper's blood." _Aaron gasped as the thought suddenly entered into his head. Where had it come from? He didn't hate Seviper's. His beast friend was a Seviper!

"_Friend? They're nothing but lying, savage monsters! They shouldn't even be called Pokemon, those beasts!" _It was like there was a second being in his head, one who was twisting his mind to hate Sevipers. He tried to block out the voice, but that only caused the voice to speak louder, digging even deeper into his brain.

As the red markings of the Zangoose started to appear all over his body, he suddenly realised what was happening. The Marking not only changed you physically, but also mentally, to ensure that the feud between the Zangoose and Seviper would go one until only one species remained.

"No! I must fight it!" By this point, the ends on his paws were bright red, as well as his left ear and a huge jagged marking now ran across his chest. Because of his growing size, the gold band no longer hung loose, holding on to his arm, white fur covering up most of it. The red streak was almost done, red fur inching slowly towards his face.

"_Why fight it? Soon you will have all the power you will need…to take down those worthless serpents_!"

"No!!"

* * *

At that same moment, Silvia was trying to fight off the voice in her head as well. When her skin had finished shedding, she now several gold scales on her body, including several around her head that looked like a helmet. The blade on her tail had greatly grown in size and in deadliness, as well as a huge pair of fangs sticking out from the upper part of her mouth, dripping with venom. Like Aaron, the gold band she now wore no longer hung loosely against her scales.

Once that was finished though, the markings started, changing some of her black scales purple, shaped in jagged forms. As the strange voice had filled her head, she too had realised what it was trying to do.

"Stop! Please!" she begged the strange voice.

"_Why would I stop what is destined to happen? Soon, you will find you enjoy the thrill you get from fighting those worthless creatures known as the Zangoose!"_

"No!!"

* * *

They both let out a scream from opposite ends of the forest as their final markings began to show themselves. A streak of red fur formed its way over Aaron's left eye, looking like a huge scar. The scales around a gold scale on Silvia's eye turned to a shade of purple completely surrounding it. As the marks stopped, so did their screaming.

For a few minutes, neither of them moved. They just lay there, panting, eyes closed. Suddenly, Aaron's eyes shot open. His eyes had changed to a bright yellow colour, his pupil dilated to an almost fierce degree. Standing back up, he looked down at his claws and…smiled.

Silvia eyes snapped back open, revealing then to be now bright red. Coiling herself up to her full length, she dragged her blade tail against the floor, testing how sharp and deadly it was. She also started to smile.

"With these claws…

"With this blade…

"…all Seviper…

"…all Zangoose…"

"…must die!!" They both started laughing at their new powers, thinking of how they would use the powers to take out the other. They had both put up a good fight, resisting the voice inside their heads, but the Aaron and Silvia who had been best friends were gone. They were now an Aaron and Silvia who would kill the other without a second thought. Their memories of once being friends were gone, locked in their deep subconscious. But there was still one thing that remained of their friendships.

The two gold bands were still being worn by one another. Neither of them knew why they were wearing them, but those bands were the only thing keeping their friendship from completely disappearing. It was a slim hope, but it was their only hope...

**End Chapter**


	3. The Hunt

_Just got back from two week vacation, having just finished this chapter. Just recovered from a case of writers block to write this. Hope all you readers like it! _

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.**

Aaron let out a yawn as he waited for his shift to be over. It had been six weeks since the once young Zangoose had gone through the passage into adulthood known as the Marking. Since then, many things about him had started to change. He had started training, sharpening his skills with each passing day. His personality had changed as well, going from the timid, sometimes shy Aaron, into the rash, slightly vicious hunter.

He yawned again as he leaned against the wall for support. It was getting late, and he had hoped to get in a few hours of training before he called it a night. But something had thrown a wrench into his plans, namely the tied up Seviper sitting behind a jail cell of Zangoose construction just a few feet to his left.

A hunting crew had apprehended the middle aged, female Seviper just a few hours ago. Normally, Zangoose would kill any Seviper that crossed their path, but this one had been spared. The only reason that she still breathed was that she was now going to be used as a bargaining chip.

Around a month ago, both the Zangoose and the Seviper had discovered a new area of territory at almost identical times. Many attempts had been made by both sides to claim the area as their own, but all had ended in failure. At the moment, both sides were at a stalemate. So, when an opportunity to claim a new territory had shown itself as their now bound up prisoner, they leapt at the chance.

"Come on, come on…when will this be over?" Aaron muttered to himself. He had no idea how he had been roped into this, only that he had been given no chance to refuse.

"Impatient aren't you?"

Aaron turned to look at the prisoner. His blood started to boil as he looked at one of his family's worst enemies. How he would just love to end the life of this worthless serpent right then and there…

"Your plan will never work you know."

Aaron let out a slight chuckle at the Seviper's words.

"Is that so?"

"My allies will bust me out of here before you can even make a move! When that happens, you will all wish you were…"

A loud noise rang through the small jail as Aaron jammed his claws through the cell's bars. The Seviper quickly jumped back, the claws just grazing her scales.

"You listen here you vile thing. You only remain alive because we require you to claim the land that is rightfully ours. But the moment you don't become of any use to us…" He held up his claws, causing them to glint in the light of the sun. "…Don't think I won't hesitate to kill you where you stand!"

Seconds after he finished talking, the door of the prison opened and a white head poked in.

"Shifts over. My turn to watch the captive."

"Finally." Was all he said as he headed for the exit, giving the prisoner one last evil glare before leaving.

As the guards switched, the female Seviper found herself looking out into the distance through the window on the far side of the room. As she watched the sun begin to drip towards the horizon, she found herself wishing that her daughter was alright.

* * *

Now that Aaron was off his shift, he set off for where he usually spent his free time: the training arena. Maybe today he would be able to break his record of beating 24 fighters in a row…

"Hey Aaron!" Aaron turned at the sound of his name, to see his dad walking up to him.

"Hey dad. Off for training too?"

"No, actually. I came to talk to you."

"About what?"

His dad didn't speak for a moment, before saying, "I think it's time for some real training."

Aaron was confused. "What do mean? Real training?"

"Fighting several of your fellow Zangoose won't prepare you for fighting our true enemy. The only way to prepare for those beastly serpents…is some hands on experience."

"You mean…" Aaron was ecstatic as he realised what his father meant.

"Yep. My group spotted a small group of Seviper a little bits off from here. I want you to come with me and see how it's really done!"

"Awesome! Let's get going!" With that, they both raced off towards the forest. As they raced off, they didn't notice a pair of eyes watching closely behind…

* * *

After a few minutes of racing through the dense bushes, they came to the spot. It was a small clearing, completely surrounded by trees and bushes. Sitting directly in the centre were three Seviper, talking amongst themselves.

Aaron smiled as he saw that they had left themselves completely open to attack. Both Zangoose moved like the wind as they silently moved deeper towards the clearing. As they got closer, Aaron's ears started to twitch as he started to pick up at what the three snakes where saying.

"Are you sure this will take us to their camp?" asked the rather large Seviper on the left, probably the leader of the group.

"Are you questioning my tracking skills?" asked the one on the left of the leader in an angry tone, the navigator by Aaron's guess.

"What if I am!"

"Why you…" the navigator looked like he was ready to pounce on his own team leader. What savages these serpents were, attacking their own superiors. Aaron had to stifle a chuckle, as he realised that because of their arguing, that they had completely left themselves defenceless! This would be easy!

"Stop fighting you two!" cried out the third one, revealing something that slightly shocked him. The third member of their team…was female! Females where almost never let on hunting groups unless they were exceptionally good, like his mom. So either she was really good, or this wasn't a hunting group. As he looked over at her, a strange feeling seemed to pass through his whole body, causing his fur to stand up on end.

He…he knew her. He didn't know how, or why, but the moment he saw her, a sense of Déjà vu passed through him and the image of her suddenly shot into his head. A million questions flooded his head, such as, who was she? As well as, How do he know her?

Before he could further contemplate these questions, he heard a low growl coming from next to him. Looking over, he saw his father, hunched on all four, fur standing up on end, his teeth bared, the red markings on his body flashing a bright red. He looked like he was angered by something.

Taking his eyes from his dad for a second, he saw the leader of the group look up, as if in thought, before the distinct markings on his scaly body started to flash as well. Looking down, he shut his eyes for a second before a slight chuckle escaped his lips.

"So…" he suddenly spoke out, not seeming to be talking to anyone, "…you've come back to try and finish what we started. Only this time…" He cut off as he turned towards the very bush they were hiding behind, revealing an X shaped indent where his left eye should have been. "…you'll lose more then just you're eye."

Aaron had to stifle a slight gasp as he recognised who this was. It was Cross, one of the most deadliest of Sevipers, as well as the mortal enemy of his father. Not unlike the first Zangoose and Sevipers to begin this feud, these two had marked each other for life. The first time these two had fought, his father had lost his right eye while Cross lost his left, taking on the nickname he now followed because of his scar. Now, these two would seek each other out, ignoring hunting missions and even other prey to continue their battle…until only one remained.

All that was seen was a white and red blur as Aaron's father raced out into the clearing. A loud clanging rang through the trees as both claws and blade met in the centre, each trying to push the other pack. Looking up, his father looked Cross in his one good eye, as a smile spread across his face.

"Yes, I will lose something once this is over. I will have lost an opponent such as you!"

"Hmph…Big words from someone who's about to die!"

As these two prepared their continuing confrontation, the other two Seviper decided it was time to get going while they still had the chance. The navigator, not wanting to get involved, quickly tried to slither off. He was quickly stopped as the two other Zangoose from the hunting group leapt out, cornering him.

Aaron quickly turned as he saw the female of their group race off into the forest. Not wanting possible prey to escape, he leapt from his hiding spot before racing off after her.

Taking to the trees, he leapt from branch to branch as she slithered off just a few feet ahead and below him. As the chase continued, he just couldn't shake the strange feeling that he knew her. How was it possible? She was a Seviper, he a Zangoose. How could he possibly know who she was!?

"Damn, she's fast." Muttered Aaron as he saw her race off ahead of him, causing him to pick up speed. As he did this, the next branch he stepped on suddenly snapped, causing him to plummet towards the ground. He passed through several underbrush before he finally hit ground.

As he tried to recover from his fall, he quickly realised where he was. He had stepped into the centre of the forest, the very area that the Seviper and Zangoose where fighting over. The reason that both sides wanted this place was because it was the perfect hiding spot, many groups had already gotten lost when looking for it.

Just as he stood back up, he heard the sound of a bush rustling to his left. He didn't have long to react before the pitch-black body of a Seviper shot out, baring it's fangs. He just barely dodged, the fangs coming within an inch of his chest. Missing its target, the Seviper quickly rolled over back onto her belly to face her opponent.

"I'm surprised you were able to dodge that." She said with a smirk, her forked tongue flicking in and out of her mouth.

"There's many things about me that will surprise you…" he extended his claws as he prepared to strike, "…like how quickly I can separate your head from your vile, scaly body!"

"Typical Zangoose. You mouth off about your skills, but when it actually comes to a fight, you're the first to run off with your tail between your legs." As she spoke, her bladed tail scraped against the ground with each word.

"Like I have to defend myself against your kind. I'll let me claws do the talking for me!"

"So be it!"

With that, it started. With his claws drawn, Aaron charged, moving with incredible speed. Just as he came close, the bladed end of the Seviper's tail shot forward, ready to impale him. In a split second, he ceased his charge, before pushing up with his feet, leaping over his scaly adversary. As he landed, he lashed out, aiming for the neck.

His claws hit scales, but not those on the neck, but a few inches below. He saw blood spray from the wound, but it wasn't mortal. Before he could question how he could miss, he was headbutted in the chest, knocking him back a few steps, as well as knocking the wind out of him.

Before he could regain his barings, a pair of long, red fangs, glistening in the light of the sun, shot towards him. Thinking fast, he held his left arm out in front of him, a sharp pain shooting through him as the fangs imbedded themselves into his flesh.

He growled through his teeth as he tried to resist the pain. As the female serpent hung from his arm, she arched her body, sending her bladed tail shooting towards his face. He quickly bent his head back to the side, the blade just nicking his right cheek, blood rolling down his face. Before she could pull it back in, he reached up with his good arm and grabbed just below the blade..

Pulling her out to her full length, he reach out and bit down, hard. He tasted blood as his teeth drilled through the tough scales. He heard a cry from the Seviper, but she still didn't let go. Pushing as much force as he could muster into his jaw, he clamped down even harder, cracking the scales and hitting the soft flesh underneath.

That did it, as she yelled out in pain, her mouth opening wide. Releasing his jaws, he yanked her body back, removing her from his arm. Drawing his arm back, he threw her, her black body twisting in the air, before she slammed into the trunk of a nearby tree, sliding down to the ground.

He spat the purple blood from his mouth, wiping it away with his arm. As he did this, he saw that when he had yanked her off, one of her fangs had actually broken off and was still stuck in his arm. He would take care of that later, but right now…

Before she could get back up, he was upon her. He grabbed tightly onto her throat, holding her up against the tree. As she tried to move her tail to strike, he stamped his foot down on top of it, pinning it to the ground. She was stuck, unable to defend herself.

"Well, well, well…look who came out on top. Me. What were you actually hoping to accomplish by coming out here?"

"_This wasn't suppose to happen…" _she thought as she stareed death in the face. The plan had been simple: get to the Zangoose camp, surprise them, before releasing the Seviper they were holding prisoner and escaping. Them getting discovered wasn't part of the plan.

"Well, any last words before I end your miserable, pathetic life?"

She held her head up, looked him right in the eyes, and said in the most mocking of voices, " Bite me…"

Aaron just laughed. "That's it? A little late for that. But hey, it's your funeral. Literally." With that he brought up his claws and prepared for the kill. The Seviper shut her eyes as she prepared for the end. As she did this , several scales on her neck seemed to part, a gold band peeking through.

Aaron stopped in mid attack as he caught site of the band around her neck. That was the reason his attack had missed before, because as he attacked, he had seen that band and for some reason his claws had seemed to have moved with a life of their own to prevent the mortal wound. Even now his hands seemed to be shaking, something stopping him from dealing the finishing blow. Why was the sight of this simple trinket unnerving him so much?

As he thought this, his eyes seemed drawn to the band he wore around his right arm. An exactly identical band. A look that could only be described as a mix of horror, pain, and confusion appeared on his face, before he started to step back, releasing her from his death grip. As she lay there, gasping for breath, it all came back to him. He DID know her! He was the one who had given the band to her, an act of friendship, remembrance, as well as…

At that very moment, it was as if a fog that had clouded his mind for the last six weeks had parted, revealing the truth to him. The look of anger and hatred disappeared from his eyes, as the old Aaron returned. As this occurred, a single name escaped his lips.

"Silvia…"

At the same time, confusing questions ran through Silvia's head as she lay there trying to catch her breath. What was wrong with this Zangoose? He had beaten her, ready to kill, but then had suddenly stopped. To her, he looked like he had just seen a ghost. Not only that, but he had let her go! And how did he know her name?

"Silvia…" Aaron repeated, unsure if what he was seeing was real. It was actually her, his dearest friend in the whole world, and he had tried to kill her! Although she had tried to do the same, it was like an unspeakable horror to him. As his old memories returned, a thought occurred to him. He remembered her…but did she remember him? He had to see…

Slowly, he started to step towards Silvia, who was just recovering from his attack. He had only taken a few steps, when the bladed edge of her tail shot forward and came within an inch of his chin. Looking over, her saw a menacing look appear in her eyes.

"Stay away from me!"

"Silvia, don't you know who I am?"

She just scoffed at this. "Why should I know you? It's not like I take the time to learn about your kind. Which reminds me, how do you know my name?"

"Silvia, its me, Aaron, your best friend!"

Silvia had to resist bursting out in laughter. What was this Zangoose's damage?

"Don't make me laugh. Even if I knew someone by the name of Aaron, he wouldn't be a lying, savage, good-for-nothing Zangoose!" With that, she drew her tail back and slashed.

Aaron was just able to dodge her attack, but that wasn't the end of it. Reeling in again, she launched her tail blade again, this time just grazing his side. As she continued this, he tried to dodge as best he could, but it was kind of hard when he was more concerned with the fact that she didn't remember him then the fact that she wanted to kill him!

"Come on! Fight back! Make this more interesting!" scream Silvia, the hint of excitement in her voice.

As she brought the blade down again, Aaron was able to catch it in both paws just before it hit and split his head wide open.

"Stop this. I don't want to fight you!"

"That makes one of us." She responded before headbuting him in the chest, knocking him down and causing him to release her tail. Bringing the blade above him, she was in the perfect position to impale him. All it would take was one quick slash…

Sensing danger, Aaron quickly rolled over to the right, just as Silvia's tail struck the spot where he had been not two seconds ago. Having missed him, she prepared her attack once again.

"Silvia, don't do this!"

"Sorry, I don't take last requests!" With that she swung her tail downward, ready to finish him. Having only seconds to think, he raised his right arm infront of him, hoping to block the attack.

Whether it was by fate or just plain luck, her attack struck the gold band he wore on his arm. The attack caused it to vibrate, emitting a slight humming noise. As this noise filled the air, a look of shock, almost identical to Aaron's, appeared on her face as she slowly started to slither backwards.

Seeing this, Aaron quickly got back up, facing the shocked Silvia. Once again, he started to slowly step towards her. She looked afraid as he started advancing towards her.

"I'm not going to hurt you." He said, trying to reassure her. Soon, he was standing right infront of her, the perfect distance for an attack. But he didn't attack her, he didn't say a word as he leaned in closer, and held her in a comforting hug. She looked as shocked as ever as he did this, but she didn't try and push him off.

"Please, please go back, back to the old Silvia I used to know." For a moment as he said those words, neither of them said anything. Then, he felt water dripping on to his shoulder. Silvia was…crying.

"Aaron…I'm…I'm sorry."

What happened next seemed to happen in slow motion. He heard the sound of bushes rustling behind. Before he could turn around to see who it was, he saw a black streak, before a sharp pain shot from his shoulder through his entire body. Turning his head, he saw Silvia, her one remaining fang digging into his shoulder, injecting him with its venom.

"Silvia…why…" That was all he managed to say before the venom took affect. He felt his legs collapse out from under him, his arms falling to his side before he hit the ground. His vision started to blur before him. He saw a few blobs of black and purple, but that was the last he saw before his whole world became swallowed up by darkness as he lost consciousness

**End Chapter**


	4. Ones True Feelings

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.**

Total darkness. That was all he knew as he slipped into unconsciousness. He felt like seconds had passed, before a huge burst of water struck his body, soaking its way through his fur. What was happening? Had been thrown in the river to drown? He started sputtering, gasping for air, until he realized that except for the water he was covered in, there was no more. Willing his eyes to open, he waited for his vision to clear to see what was happening.

What he saw when he opened his eyes was what looked like a young Seviper, rows of bars in front of him, holding a bucket in his mouth. Had he fallen asleep during his guard duty and this little kid had thought it was funny to soak him silly? He stood up to teach the kid a lesson…

…before falling flat onto his face. A quick look over showed that his legs were tightly bound. Turning his head, he saw that his arms were bound too, at such an angle that he couldn't use his claws to cut them. Another look at his surroundings revealed that he wasn't on guard duty watching a prisoner, he was the prisoner.

He was in a dug out chamber of Seviper construction. The only access to the outside world was a small window about a foot or two from the ceiling. Rows of bars stood before him, locking him in. Looking up, he saw that the young Seviper was rolling on the floor, laughing.

"I see…you're finally…awake." The kid struggled to talk through his laughter.

"Where am I?" Aaron demanded, though he didn't expect an answer.

At his question the kid stopped laughing, looking at him in a very gloating way. "Well where do you think you are you big brute? You're in Seviper territory, in our jail to be precise."

"How did I get here?" But the moment he asked that question, what had just happened came flooding back to him. He had seen Silvia, they had fought. During that fight, he had regained his senses and had tried to do the same for Silvia. Just when he thought she was back, she had stabbed him in the back, knocking him out and bringing him to her village.

"You were captured of course! Man, it really is true what they all say. "All brawn, no brain.""

"Why you…" Aaron attempted to lunge at the kid, but his restraints reduced the chances of that greatly. The kid continued with his mocking laughter, which was really starting annoying to no end. Suddenly, the large door of the jail swung open loudly. They both turned to see who it was.

Slithering into the room…was Silvia! Aaron was about to call out to her, before he remembered what she had done to him. She turned her gaze towards him, which caused him to quickly turn his head away. She then turned to his young jailer.

"Jeremy, how many times have you been told to not taunt the prisoners!"

"I was just having a little fun! Besides, he's all tied up. What could he possibly…"

"Don't underestimate these creatures. Just because they may look helpless, doesn't mean they are. They're nothing but a bunch of savages." Each one of Silvia's words felt like a knife to Aaron as she taunted him.

"Now, time to go Jeremy. It's my turn to watch the prisoner." Not wasting anytime arguing, the kid shot out of the jail room in less than two seconds. Once he had left, she quickly slammed the door closed behind him. Slithering over to the far wall, she picked up the jail key from its hook, before locking the large door shut. Once that was done, she made her way over to the cell, sliding the key into the lock with a click. Aaron looked up as she pushed the bars back and slithered over him. Aaron didn't even try to meet her eyes.

"Not in a very talkative mood? Well…" she slowly raised her bladed tail over his head, "…I can fix that." Aaron shut his eyes as he waited for the inevitable pain.

Nothing came. Instead, he heard the sound of rope snapping, followed by the feeling of his arms going slack. The sound repeated itself, soon followed by the feeling of the pressure on his legs loosening. Opening his eyes, he turned his neck and nearly gasped. Silvia's target hadn't been him, but the ropes binding his arms and legs. No longer bound, he was able to get himself up. He turned his gaze to Silvia, confused.

She just smiled at him and said, "You ready to talk now?"

"S…Silvia…is it really you?"

"If it wasn't, would I of untied you like I just did?"

A smile spread across his face, before they both met in a friendly hug. Aaron had to fight back the tears that were forming in his eyes. When she had fought him in the forest, he was worried that she had been gone forever, and those fears had only increased after she had…

The second that thought crossed his mind, he pulled away from her. 'If you remembered, then why did you knock me out? Why did you bring me here!" he was practically shouting in anger.

Silvia turned away from him and a look of guilt appeared on your face. "You have to believe me, I didn't want for this to happen."

"Then why did you?" the anger in his voice had subsided.

"I had to know. I needed a time when you could tell me."

"Tell you what?"

"The Seviper that was taken prisoner. Is she…" Silvia seemed afraid to say the rest.

"The prisoner? Yeah, she was fine when I checked."

"Oh…that's good." She seemed to sigh in relief.

"Silvia, what's going on? How do you know her?"

Silvia grew quiet suddenly, as if trying to find the right words. Aaron sensed that whoever that other Seviper was, it was someone who Silvia cared deeply about.

"The Seviper that was taken…she's…she's my mother."

At that moment, it was like the temperature in the room had dropped. Aaron was speechless. Her mother!? The Seviper that they had taken prisoner, the same one he had been guarding and had threatened to kill…was Silvia's mother!?

Finally, after a few moments, Aaron was able to find his voice. "Your…mother?"

Silvia just nodded her head. "It happened so suddenly. She had just gone out for a few minutes, when the Zangoose suddenly struck. Before anyone could stop them, she was already gone."

"So…that's why you where with Cross and his navigator."

"I felt horrible for not being able to stop them, so I promised I would get my revenge on them. But now…"

"Now you're not sure." Aaron finished.

Silvia just shook her head. "Even if I can't do anything, just hearing that she's still alive puts my mind at ease." A smile started to spread across her face. "Sorry about knocking you out."

"Well, you could have at least mentioned something beforehand."

"I would have, but I had to make it look convincing. Cross was there."

"He was?"

"Yeah, came just as I remembered everything. He's actually been pretty mad since we came back, saying that his prey ran from him. "

"Knowing those two, my dad will say the same thing."

"Wait…your dad is Cross's mortal enemy?"

"It's a long story, but yeah."

"Well…that explains a lot."

"A lot about what?"

"Where you got your fighting skills from. It's because of that that you came close to beating me."

"Close to? If I recall, I had you pinned."

"…And if I recall, who was it that used to win almost every game of hide and seek, or keep away we ever played?"

Aaron was prepared to say a catchy comeback, but nothing came to mind. It was true though, that she had been the victor on more than one occasion. "Well…I…" His mind continued to draw a blank.

"I thought so." A look of "knowing she was right" appeared on her face. But it didn't last long, as a look of sadness soon replaced it.

"I wish we could go back to those days"

She wasn't the only one. Aaron also wished they could go back, back to those days where they didn't have a care in the world. Just playing and having fun with his best friend.

"Even though we both remember, it doesn't change anything. We're just one Seviper and Zangoose. How can we ever hope to stop a war that's been going on forever?"

"Well…we may not be able to stop it, but we might be able to slow it down."

"Huh?" Silvia was confused.

"Think about it. The most recent fighting has been over a single area of territory. As far as we know, no one has claimed it as their own. But what if we changed that?"

"But how?"

"I have a plan."

So, he told her his plan. She listened intently, not saying a word until she was sure he had finished. Once he was done, she spoke. "Are sure it will work?"

"Positive. Just as long as they all act the way they should."

"I just wish I could help some more."

"Oh, but you have." Holding up his left arm, she saw that her fang, which had broken off during their fight, was still imbedded in his arm. It wasn't far enough to inject any more venom, though it still carried a small amount inside. Reaching over, he grabbed the small fang and quickly yanked it out, slightly wincing as it was removed.

"With this…" he held up the fang in his hand as he spoke, "…our plan will be set in motion."

"Alright. I'll make sure my part goes smoothly." She looked up at the small window and saw that the sun had set a few minutes ago. "I should get going, the next guard will be here shortly."

"Before you go…there's something you should know."

"Yeah?"

"Even if this plan works, this may be the last time we see each other. If so…"

"Aaron what is it you're trying to say?"

For a moment, he seemed unsure of what to say or do. Walking over, he looked her right in the eyes, seeing a confused look on her face. What he did next shocked both of them. Placing his hand on her back, he pulled her in close, before their lips met in a passionate kiss. Silvia looked shocked, but she didn't try to pull away from him. It lasted a few more seconds before they pulled apart.

"Silvia…you've always been more than just a friend to me."

"Aaron…" Tears seemed to be forming in her eyes. Whether they were tears of joy or tears of sadness was unsure. Once again, they both met in a hug, only this time, it wasn't just a "friendly" hug. But even in this moment of happiness, dark thoughts clouded their minds. _"Would their plan work?" ,"Would they ever see each other again?"_ Only time would provide the answers to these questions.

**End Chapter**

**Author**: I will say this now to cease any hateful comments that may ensue. I feel that I may have rushed the ending a little, but after such a long time, I just really wanted to finish this chapter. SO please, no flaming. Thank you.


	5. Escape to the Old and New

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.**

98…99…100. That was the third time Aaron had counted up to hundred, and frankly, it was starting to bore him. It had been at least an hour since he had talked with Silvia, with at least three more guard changes. The first part of Aaron's plan involved him escaping, but he didn't want his escape to be linked to Silvia in anyway, the purpose for his wait. Not only that, but his arms were starting to cramp from being held behind his back for so long, giving the illusion that he was still tied up.

Aaron looked over at the new guard, having just switched a few minutes ago. He looked like a rather old Seviper, his scales were flaky and his fangs and tail blade were worn down to almost nothing. How much Aaron hated to do this, he looked like the perfect person to get him out.

"Hey, you!" The guard turned at his sudden call, quite sluggishly actually. The guard seemed to stare at him with his old eyes, before answering in a slightly angry tone, "What you want fur bag?"

"Any chance I could get some water over here? I'm dying of thirst!"

"How is that my concern? You can die for all I care!" Aaron couldn't resist a smile. This old man had some bite to him after all.

"Come on! Just some water! If I'm your prisoner, you gonna have to keep me alive, right?"

The guard gave a sour face as he realized what Aaron said was true. If the prisoner died on his shift, he would be held responsible for it. Something these old bones of his couldn't handle. Realizing he was beat, he walked over and picked up a food tray they used for prisoners. It still had some water in it, though it was horribly dirty. The old man smiled. If this prisoner needed a drink, it would be the most disgusting thing he had ever tasted.

Slithering over to the cell, he quickly slid the tray through a small slot under the bars, placing the tray only inches from the bars. Even though Aaron could walk, he pretended to fall over, as if his legs were still bound. He made the attempt to crawl towards the tray, but didn't get very far.

"Hey old man, could ya move it a little closer?" Aaron made sure there was a slight sneer in his voice. The guard let out a sigh before slipping his tail through one of the holes in the cells, pushing the tray just a little bit closer. Aaron once again tried to move closer, but not that much.

"Just a little bit closer would ya?" The guard was starting to get ticked off by his cocky attitude and in anger, almost shoved the tray in Aaron's face. "This close enough?" he said with anger clearly in his voice.

"Ya…" before the guard could pull his tail back, Aaron quickly reached out, grabbing on to, the now shocked, guard's tail. "…That's close enough."

Before the guard could let loose a cry for help, he was yanked back, pulled through one of the openings in the bars. Not wasting any time, Aaron swung the old mans body back, smashing his head against the far wall. It wasn't hard enough to kill him, but it was enough to knock him unconscious.

Aaron let go as the old serpents body went limp. He was still breathing, which meant he was still alive, but Aaron still felt horrible all the same. "Sorry I had to do this.", he quietly said as he stepped over the unconscious body. Walking over to the back wall, he stretched his cramped arms for a sec, before plunging his claws into the soft earth. Once he was sure they were in far enough that he could remove them, yet not come out accidentally, he proceeded with his climb up the steep wall.

It only took him about a minute to reach the small window at the top of the wall. Pulling himself up, he was able to squeeze himself through the small opening, onto the cool grass outside. Night had fallen shortly after his talk with Silvia, so the whole area was blanketed in darkness, only being pierced by the slight hint of moonlight. Pressing himself into the shadow of the jail, he checked the area for any roaming Seviper. Finding none, he slowly stepped into the moonlight, before racing off into the forest.

* * *

The leaves rustled as Aaron leapt from branch to branch, looking for the highest one he could find. After a few minutes, he found one that just jutted out from the top of an extremely tall tree. Once he was able to make his way up, he surveyed the area, hoping to see something. When he didn't, he lifted his paw up to his mouth and let loose with a loud piercing whistle.

He waited as the sound echoed through the trees. He waited a minute. Then two, but still nothing happened. He sighed as he realized that his call hadn't worked, that… His ears perked up as a sound filled the air. It was soon followed by another sound, which sounded like something snapping. As far as he could tell, the sound was coming from…right next to him!

Turning his head quickly, he saw that the sound had been the sound of the branch he was standing on, cracking under his weight. It gave another snap, this time causing the branch to lurch down. Before Aaron could leap off, the branch gave another lurch, before snapping completely.

The sound of air rushing past him filled his ears as he began to plummet. Thinking fast, he saw a nearby tree not to far from him. Without a thought for whether he would make it or not, he leaped from the falling branch towards the tree. For a few key seconds, all he felt was the air flowing past him as he shot through the air. If one could read his mind, they would hear the sound of praying, "Please make it! Please make it!" being repeated over and over again. As the branch came closer, he reached out his paw to grab it.

His claws just brushed against the bark. For a moment, he seemed to hover in mid-air, the branch just out of his reach, before gravity took over and he began to plummet. Thoughts were running through his head at a hundred miles an hour, as well as the feeling up panic coursing through him. But somehow, through his panic stricken mind, one thing was able to stand out. His will for survival.

Without a second's hesitation, he lunged out towards the tree trunk. Tree bark peeled back as his claws just dug into the tree slowing his decent. A moment later, he stopped, just hanging there. He looked to see the tree branch smash into the ground, shattering into a million tiny shards. Aaron sighed in relief, before he pulled himself up onto a lower branch of the tree.

"Phew…that was close."

"You're telling me."

Aaron looked up at the sound of the new voice. Just a few branches above him, was a large bird. Its plumage was dark blue, with a few red feathers added in around the neck and chest. There was only one bird Pokemon that Aaron knew of that had that colored feathers, a Swellow.

Lifting up its huge wings, the Swellow swooped down before perching on a branch right across from Aaron. It gave him a quick look over, before speaking again. "So, what's a Zangoose like you doing out at this time of night?"

"I don't see how that's any of YOUR business."

"Oh come one. There has to be a reason someone like you would be out this far."

"How does what I do concern you?"

"Because it helps to pass the time. Now are you going to tell me, or am I going to have to get forceful?"

"Like you could take me."

"You'll see things a little differently when you're hanging upside down by your ankles." The bird laughed at it's own little joke.

Aaron sighed as he realized this was getting him nowhere. "Well, if you must know…I'm looking for someone. Maybe you've seen him. He's…" The Swellow cut him off, as he seemed to go into thought.

"Let me guess. He's about this high…" he indicated with his wing to about half his height, "…has blue and red colored feathers like me, rather quick, and his name starts with L-A-R."

"Yes. You know him?"

"Nope. Never heard of him."

It didn't take a genius to figure out that this bird had just played him for a fool. But, as far as Aaron knew, there was only one bird with such an attitude, coupled with the fact that he knew so much, could possibly mean…

"You can stop with the act…Lark."

The Swellow began to chuckle, which sounded more like a birdcall. "Nothing gets past you does it Aaron?"

"Your "humorous" attitude gave you away. Your appearance though, was what threw me off."

"Well, it's been a while, people change. Speaking of which, what happened to you two? You haven't called on me to deliver letters in months. I was starting to worry."

"Well…it's kind of a long story."

"Well, it's a LONG trip bath to your camp, which I assume is where you're going. How about I fly you there, while you can tell me all about this "long story"."

Aaron would have preferred to get there on his own, as one Zangoose was more inconspicuous then a Zangoose on the back of a Swellow. But Aaron knew that Lark wasn't one to take no for an answer. Also, he needed him for his plan to work.

"Alright." Was all he said as Lark proceeded to liftoff. Hopping onto the huge birds back, he wasn't even given a second to grab on, before with one powerful stroke, Lark was airborne. He had to grip onto some of Lark's feathers just to keep from falling off.

"Hey, easy on the feathers!"

"Well, what else am I suppose to hold onto?"

After a few seconds, Aaron was able to keep himself balanced without having to yank out the huge birds feathers. As they flew on, Aaron began to tell Lark the whole story. He told him about what was written in the last letter he had him send and about their chat in the forest. He told him about the Marking, how it had changed them, as well as how they had been able to break free from it. He told about what they had said in the cell, as well as his plan. He left out the part about him and Silvia's kiss though…

Aaron had just finished explaining the plan to Lark, when the huge bird veered down and perched just outside the Zangoose camp. As Aaron climbed off, he turned once again to Lark.

"So, remember the plan?"

"Sure. I can get the word out as fast as any other bird in this forest. By dawn, everyone will know, thanks to me!" He puffed out his chest feathers and made himself seem taller, as pride started to flow through him. Aaron found it hard to not be bothered by Lark's air of "Excellency".

"O…k. Just make sure you get it done. We need as many people to know for this to work."

"No problem!" With one quick flap of his wings, he was off again. Aaron watched as he flew out of sight. He still worried that Lark could mess up, but that was out of his hands as of now. If all of this was going to work, he would have to remain focused on his part of the plan, for if done correctly, it would set the "wheel" of his plan in motion. Leaping off from the branch he was standing on, he made his way back to the camp.

* * *

"We must act now!" Aaron's father's voice rang from his hut as Aaron hid back in the shadows. Peaking in ever so slightly, he saw that his parents, along with several other adult Zangoose, and Zack, were having some kind of meeting.

"Those bastards took my son! We must strike now!" Saying that his father was mad was an understatement. Now Aaron knew where Zack got his temper from.

"Easy Colt, calm down." Aaron's father stared daggers at the one who had spoken. Almost no one called him by his name anymore. He had thrown away his name after Cross had injured him, saying that he would only become Colt again when that "vile serpent" had been vanquished.

"Don't tell me to calm down! Those cold-blooded beasts took my son! We have to act!"

A slight chuckled issued itself from his brother. "Why should we do anything at all?"

Silence filled the room, as everyone stared at Zack, shocked by his statement. Aaron's mom was the first to speak. "Zack, he's your brother!"

"So what? If he's weak enough to get himself captured, then he's a poor excuse for a Zangoose, or a brother." His voice seemed to drip with venom as he said "Brother". "I say, we cut our losses and leave him to his fate. Good riddance to bad…"

Zack wasn't able to finish, as a blur of white and red streaked through the room, sending Zack flying back into the far wall. Blood dripped from two jagged marks slashed across his face. His dad stood over him, blood dripping from his claws. Aaron didn't need to see it to know that a deep fire of anger and hatred was burning in his eyes.

The room was so quiet, you could hear a leaf drop from outside. No one seemed to breath in the room, all were shocked by what had just occurred. Blood still dripping from his claws, the Zangoose once known as Colt walked over to his wounded son, before violently lifting him up by the scuff of his neck, pushing him up against the wall.

"Now, you listen here. No one, not even you are to talk about him that way. He was a better son then you ever were! He never needed to use something to make himself stronger! If anything, you're the weak one!" His claws glinted in the light as he prepared for another strike.

"Jeez…" His father froze as Aaron's voice filled the hut, "I'm gone not even one day and everything goes to chaos." Dropping Zack, he turned to the door to see Aaron, resting against the doorframe. Immediately, the anger vanished from his eyes, replaced by the look of a loving father.

"What, you all look surprised to see me?" As he stepped into the room, his mom, who was obviously overjoyed to see him, immediately tackled him to the ground.

"Aaron! I was so worried about you!"

"Easy mom, I can't breath!" Which was true, as she had tightly wrapped her arms around his neck when she had "hugged" him.

"Oh, sorry." Untying her death grip on him, she helped him back up to his feet. As soon as he was back on his feet, the questions started. One asked what had happened; another asked if he was ambushed. A third wondered how he escaped.

"Oh please! You really think that those serpents could hold me?" he tried to make it sound as confidant and truthful as possible, lest he give something away by his actions. By this point, all traces of anger had vanished in his father.

"That's my boy! Now, how about we discuss the rest over a late dinner. You must be starving."

"Well, now that you mention it…"

With that, the other adults left, while his mom went to make dinner. Aaron and his dad both left, hoping to get a few Zs before dinner was ready. In the excitement of Aaron's return, nobody seemed to notice or care for the fact that Zack was still crouching in the corner, blood still dripping from his face.

If one had of looked, they wouldn't of recognized him. Not just because of the mark on his face, but because of his eyes. As the blood dripped down his face, all that could be seen in his eyes was anger, hatred and a deep loathing for his family, especially his father and "brother". His father said that he was ashamed of him, that he was a poor excuse for a son. "_Well…he'll see. They'll all see…" _

**End Chapter**


	6. Aaron's Worry, Silvia's Happiness

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. **

It was pandemonium in the Seviper camp. When the guard had come for the morning switch, he had found the old serpent unconscious, who was now in the med chamber with minor injuries. When it was discovered that their prisoner had escaped, an alarm had gone through the entire camp. Sevipers were running back and forth, trying to figure out what to do.

During all this, Silvia was just on the outskirts of her camp, having just completed her part of their plan. A smile spread across her lips as she saw that what Aaron had said was true. With him having escaped, the whole place had been thrown into chaos. Once Aaron completed his task, the same thing would happen to his camp, setting everything in motion.

"I just hope he can pull it off." She whispered to herself, before making her way to the chaotic camp.

* * *

The Zangoose prisoner cell was filled with the sound of Aaron's foot tapping against the ground, as time slowly ticked by. He had been selected once again to watch the prisoner, even though he had just returned from being a prisoner himself. Not long after he returned, the word of his escape had spread through the camp. Several people were impressed by his escape, while others were extremely jealous of him.

To most, his current action might show boredom or just being impatient. What was really going through him was worry. Just like Silvia, he wondered if he was able to pull this off. If even the tiniest thing went wrong, it could spell disaster for both of them. If that happened...

"Hey, could you stop doing that?" Aaron looked over as the imprisoned Seviper spoke. The Seviper who just happened to be Silvia's mother. "It's really starting to get on my nerves!"

"Sor..." Aaron quickly clamped his mouth shut. He had almost apologized to her, a completely out of character thing for a Zangoose to do! If he hadn't of stopped himself, it could of given him away. When he noticed that she was looking at him oddly, he realised he had to retaliate with something fast lest she get suspicious.

"So...what if it is? Last time I checked, prisoners of war don't get to make requests!" In saying that, he tapped his foot even harder and faster, making an even louder noise. He realised that he may have been over doing it, but at least it stopped him from getting his cover blown.

As he sat their waiting, he realised he was over analyzing the whole thing, psyching himself out with needless worries. He had almost slipped up because he had been worried. For this to work, he would have to be calm and thinking clearly.

Not even five minutes later, the door to the cell creaked open. Aaron looked up to see that one of Zack's friends, Seth, was the next jailer. Although he was friends with Zack, he was the complete opposite of him: kind, easy to get along with, everything Zack wasn't.

"Hey Aaron!" Seth greeted him as he stepped in.

'Hey Seth. They roped you into this too?"

"No, I volunteered. Anything to get away from my folks for at least a little bit." Another thing about Seth was that he hated to fight. It didn't mean he couldn't defend himself if needed; he was actually lethal when it came to that. He just hated to fight until it was a last resort. His parents constantly tried to convince him to "grow a backbone!" as they said, for it was rumoured that Seth was the best fighter in the whole camp, even better then Aaron's parents.

"Well, have fun." The sarcasms was obvious in Aaron's voice. As he stepped over to the door, he turned to Seth.

"Hey, Seth?"

"Yeah?"

"It's always been bugging me, why is it you hate to fight?"

"I just feel that not EVERYTHING can be solved with violence. It is possible to solve problems with reasoning, and diplomacy."

Aaron didn't say anything, but in his mind he agreed with Seth's way of thinking. If more people thought like he did, maybe they could finally put a stop to this senseless war. But if he thought like this, did it also mean that he felt the same way he did about this war?

"Sounds to me like you got a soft spot for these serpents."

"Are you nuts? The reason this feud keeps going on is because these savage Sevipers don't understand reason! It's always "kill first, ask questions later! What beasts!"

_Guess not._

"See ya then." As Aaron stepped out, he waited for the door to close behind him. Once he heard the slam of the door, he quickly hid within the shadows of the structure. Pulling out one of the brick, a small opening was revealed, where a handcrafted dart gun lay.

He had constructed the dart gun last night, while everyone thought he had been sleeping. He wasn't one for widdling, so it had taken a while to finish. He had spent hours practicing, trying to perfect his shot. For what he was about to do, he would need dead perfect accuracy.

With the dart gun in hand, he inched his way over to a small window on the side of the jail. Looking in, he saw Seth at his post, not once taking his eyes off their scaled captive. He was at the perfect position for Aaron to make his shot. Laying the dart gun on the windowsill, he reached over to the band on his right arm and removed Silvia's fang. He had hidden it there before his shift, making sure that the point wouldn't jab into his flesh.

As he loaded his weapon, worry and nervousness once again rose up from the pit of his gut. He only had one shot to make this right. If he missed by even the tiniest bit, his whole plan would be ruined. Worse then that, he could be captured or tortured or…

_Stop it._ He had to calm down, if he kept worrying like this, then it would go wrong. He needed to purge such thoughts from his mind, while focusing on the task at hand. He just needed something else to focus on. Something happy, something calming… As if on cue, the image of Silvia popped into his head. It was soon followed by the memories of all the years they had spent together, playing, having fun, smiling…

All at once, all feelings of worry had vanished. As the memories continued to play themselves through his head, he was filled with not worry, but confidence. He could do this, he would do this! Gripping the dart gun in his paw, he readied his shot, making sure the aim was perfect. With one strong breath of air, the fang shot out of the pipe like a missile, making a slight buzzing noise as it left the barrel.

Silvia's mother looked up as she heard the strange buzzing noise. Suddenly, the sound of someone gasping filled the room. Swinging her head over in the guards direction, she saw him clutching something on his neck, his breath coming in short gasps, his eyes rolling back in his head. It looked to her like he was having some kind of seizure. Seconds later, he fell to the ground with a loud thud.

She was shocked, seeing the person who was supposed to be guarding her suddenly drop. As his body went limp, his hand slipped from his neck, revealing the large fang protruding from his flesh. She immediately recognized it as a Seviper fang, but how had it…

She didn't have long to ponder this, when the door of the jail slowly opened. It had only opened a crack, before she saw the white and red fur of a Zangoose slip in. She immediately recognized him as the previous guard, the one who had threatened to kill her. He must have heard the sound of his buddy collapsing and come to help.

What happened next was a complete shock to her. The Zangoose just leaned down next to the body, checked to make sure he was still alive, which he was, before getting up and quickly stepping over his unconscious body. Grabbing the jail keys off the wall, he then proceeded to unlock the cell door. She could only look up as he pulled the cell door back, slowly stepping into the room with the walk of someone about to kill, his claws fully extended.

Even if she was staring death in the face, she wasn't going to cower in fear. "Come back to make good on your promise?" A hint of sass could be detected in her voice.

"You could say that…" Pulling his arm back, she shut her eyes as she waited for the end to come. But instead of the sound of claws cutting scales, she heard the sound of snapping rope, followed by the feeling of her bonds loosening. Slowly opening her eyes, she gasped as she saw that the Zangoose had cut through the rope tying her, ultimately freeing her. She just stared at Aaron, a look of pure bewilderment plastered on her face.

"Surprised? I said I was going to make good on a promise. Just not the one I made to you." As he spoke, he leaned up against the bars, completely calm and relaxed.

"Then…who?"

"Your daughter."

At the mention of Silvia, Aaron was shoved back as she lunged at him, her tail blade mere inches from his throat, a murderous look on the female serpents face.

"Where is Silvia?! What have you done with her?!"

"Easy, Easy! She's fine, I assure you." The blade didn't move an inch as she continued to glare at him. Even though she wasn't using Glare, he still felt paralysed by her look alone.

"Where is she?" she repeated.

"She's back at your camp, right where I left her."

"Why did you release me?"

"I already told you. I was making good on a promise to Silvia."

"What promise?" Aaron was starting to get annoyed with the third degree questions. If he didn't hurry up, the venom from Silvia's fang could wear off, then neither of them would escape. But, seeing as she had a blade to his throat, he continued to answer her questions.

"When they captured me, Silvia was my jailer. She released me on the condition that I would release you when I got back. Seeing as I would prefer to not remain cooped up for the rest of my life in your prison, I took her up on her offer, and a Zangoose never goes back on his promises."

Silvia's mother chuckled. "I'll bet." She said in the most sarcastic tone she could muster.

"Look, I know you don't trust me…"

"Like that could ever happen."

"…And I don't expect you to. But I suggest that you get going now before another guard comes and catches us both. If that happens, what would become of your daughter?" For a moment, she seemed to hesitate, the blade trembling in front of Aaron's throat. She was torn between the anger towards this Zangoose, and the love for her daughter.

"How…how do I know you're not lying?"

"Think about it. What could I possibly gain from letting you go? If anything, I'm putting myself in more danger then you are." She seemed to consider this for a moment, coming to the realization that he was right. Her tail still didn't move.

"If I find out you harmed even one scale on Silvia, I'll come back and kill you myself." You could detect the anger in her voice and eyes. Slowly, her tail withdrew and Aaron breathed a sigh of relief as the blade was removed from his throat.

"Well then, I guess this is the last time we'll see each other." Aaron responded with a smirk. Silvia's mother gave him one last, murderous look, before pulling herself up to the cell window and slipping out without a sound. Once she was gone, Aaron quietly stepped over Seth's still unconscious body, before slipping out the jail door.

He had only taken a few steps from the door, when a voice called out behind him. "Hey, it's Aaron!" He immediately froze. Had he been caught already? Slowly turning around, his muscles relaxed and he breathed a sigh of relief as he saw a group of young Zangoose running towards him. The excited kids rushed up to him, their many voices seeming to blend together, making it hard to understand.

"See, I told you…"

"Is it true you fought ten Sevipers to escape?"

"I heard it was twenty…"

Aaron smiled as the kids continued to chatter on about him. These little ones reminded him of himself, of a time before the Marking. None of these Zangoose had a care in the world, the feud with the Seviper hardly concerned them, and they found joy in even the tiniest of things. If only the rest of their kind could be like them…

"So…" The kids all stopped as he spoke, "…You all seem to know a lot about me."

"Of course we do!" spoke up one rather spunky boy, "You escaped single-handedly from Seviper captivity. We all thought you were a goner!"

'Well, how you'd all like to know how I did escape?"

"Really?!" They all said in total unison. Aaron couldn't help but chuckle at their enthusiasm.

"Sure. Come with me to the training arena, and I'll show you first hand how it's done." Overjoyed at the thought of seeing someone they considered their idol in action, they eagerly followed behind him, like a sea of white fur. As he led them along, he could help take a peak behind him, hoping he didn't see a scaled tail poking out from somewhere. He figured she could get back on her own, he just hoped he was right.

* * *

Almost every Seviper in the camp had met in the camp centre to discuss their next course of action. By now, the frail old serpent Aaron had knocked out had recovered with just a large bump on his head. He was also mad as hell at what had happened.

"I say we go in there and massacre the whole lot of them! Let them feel the wrath of our blades!"

"Easy there old timer…" one of the hunting leaders spoke, "…we need to think this through. They still have a hostage, remember?"

"But…"

"I agree with the old man." A cheer went through the crowd as several Seviper raced their tails in agreement with the old serpents idea. As the arguing continued, Silvia remained in the back of the crowd, worried. She had no way of knowing what was happening over at the Zangoose camp, and it was worrying he to no end. Even if Aaron managed to free her mother, what would stop her from slicing him up right there? Oh if only she knew.

It was then, that a strange feeling seemed to pass through her. She didn't know what it was; it just seemed like…like something was calling to her. Turning from the crowd, she saw what looked like a black dot in the distance. A black dot that was getting closer.

Without a moment's hesitation, she broke away from the crowd. One of the hunters of the camp saw her and called out to her. "Hey, Silvia, get back here!" Several others looked over at the sudden outburst to see her race off, many wondering what she was doing.

As she slithered across the clearing, she silently hoped that what she was seeing was true. The black dot she had seen was getting closer, taking on a more detailed form. A long body, several gold scales glinting in the sun, a bladed tail, with a distinct chip near the tip. She stopped dead in her tracks as the being came into view, just a few steps away from her. Her throat had dried up, making it hard to speak. Eventually, she was able to squeeze out one word.

"Mom…"

"Silvia…" Her mother just looked at her, a smile on her face. For a moment, Silvia was frozen, unable to move from the spot. In one instant, that all changed as she rushed towards her mother, feeling the cool touch of her scales on hers. Uncontrollably, tears started to stream down her face, tears of pure joy.

"I…I thought I'd never see you again."

"Don't worry. I'm here now."

"I'm so glad your safe."

"That makes both of us."

As cheering could be heard from behind them, Silvia caught a glimpse of her mom's tail blade. She breathed a sigh of relief at the absence of blood, meaning that Aaron had been able to release her without incidence. As they made their way back to their fellow Seviper, Silvia couldn't help but smile at how smoothly Aaron's plan was going. All that was left was one final thing, something that neither Silvia nor Aaron would need to work at all to ensure happened. All it would take…was the century long anger towards the rivalling sides. Neither side knew it yet, but both would play a role in these two friends plan, whether they wanted to or not.

**End Chapter**


	7. A plan in motion, A startling discovery

Before I start this chapter, I must personaly thank Attila12 for her awesome story: The Apprenticeship, which, after reading, gave me the inspiration enough to finish this! Also, this chapter may seem longer then the last, only because I had to squeeze as much into this chapter as I could! So, Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.**

Aaron was showing the group of kids how to take down a Seviper (Using a practice dummy) when the alarm went out. The alarm was basically a loud gong, being rung over and over again. At the first ring, everyone looked up from what they were doing. By the second ring, most were already on their way to the camp center, as the gong was only rung during an emergency. Aaron threw the dummy away and looked at the group of young Zangoose.

"Sorry kids. I got to go." A groan echoed from each and every one of them, as their lesson with Aaron was cut short.

"We'll resume this once this is over with. Count on it!" With that, he raced off towards center camp. As he followed the mob of Zangoose, he passed by the jail, where a small crowd had already gathered. Even though he knew what he would see, he had to act like all this was new to him.

Parting the sea of people, he saw Seth being lowered onto a stretcher by two medics, one of them just having removed the fang from his neck. As he walked deeper into the crowd, he saw his dad off to the side.

"Dad, what happened here?"

"Well…we're not entirely sure. All we know is that when the new guard came for his shift, he found Seth lying there, a fang sticking from his neck."

"Is he alright?" Aaron had to mimic concern, as he already knew the venom wasn't enough to do any damage, except to knock him out.

"Yeah, he'll be fine. But even worse news is that our prisoner escaped." He gestured to the empty jail cell. By this time, most had left the cell, more worried about Seth then the Seviper.

"What worries me is how the Seviper were able to get in and out without being seen. It's not like they're hard to miss, with those black and purple scales of theirs."

"Maybe they snuck up on him."

"Or maybe it was an inside job." Both Aaron and his father turned at the third voice. Stepping into the prison cell, was Zack. Only he didn't resemble the Zack that Aaron remembered. He seemed to have gone through a complete change overnight. His usually combed fur was ruffled in many places, making himself seem almost feral. His face appeared to be cloaked in shadow, pierced by a pair of solid red eyes. At his very entrance, it was like all the air had been sucked out from the room, replaced by a choking miasma.

"What do you mean "an inside job"?" His father seemed oblivious to his son's sudden transformation.

"I mean, that they had help. Help from a Zangoose."

"WHAT!!!! Have you gone completely nuts!?! No Zangoose would ever help those vile serpents!"

"Someone did, and I think I know who. Isn't that right…Aaron?"

Aaron felt himself sweat as his brother turned to him. As he turned, the shadows covering his face seemed to disappear, revealing the two-jagged claw marked etched into his face. They had stopped bleeding, but he would be left with a scar for the rest of his life. What was more, they appeared to be glowing with the same flame of anger burning in his eyes.

"Don't you think it's a little strange that the day Aaron returns, our prisoner just happens to escape? And speaking of escape, how is it you were able to get out of the Seviper jail? Last I heard, they tied up their prisoners just like we do, making it impossible for them to escape on their own. Well Aaron?" Even though he spoke in a calming tone, you could detect the snide and malice in his voice.

"Well, I…" Aaron had trouble speaking, as it felt like his brother's very aura was choking him, its dark miasma filling his lungs, suffocating him.

"What nothing to say?" A chuckle issued itself from Zack's throat. "I thought as much. Your silence alone proves your guilt…"

"ENOUGH!" Their father's voice pierced through the tension in the room. "Zack, how dare you accuse Aaron of such a thing! You have crossed my last nerve!" With the same speed as last night, his claws shot through the air, stopping an inch from his son's throat. Zack didn't even flinch.

With his attention turned away, the choking cloud disappeared, allowing Aaron to breathe a sigh of relief. He gasped for air for a moment, before looking up as his dad and brother continued to stand there, still as statues.

"Dad, Zack, easy! Stop this before one of you does something they may regret." For a moment, neither of them moved. But eventually, his dad moved his claws away from his son, though he still kept him in his gaze. Aaron sighed before turning to his brother.

"To answer your questions Zack, I was able to escape from the Seviper's because one of them was cocky, thinking I was defenseless enough to attack. All it took was a few words to easily tick him off enough for his to swing blindly and cut my bonds. He got what he deserved after that. To answer you second question, I couldn't have done this because I wasn't here. I was busy at the training area."

Zack ground his fangs as Aaron explained the situation. "Is that so? Can anyone verify that?"

"Yeah, three of the arena's regulars, as well as a whole gang of kids. They were anxious to know how I was able to escape, and who am I to deny them such a request?" Zack just glared furiously at him, before he turned and left the room with a huff.

Seconds after Zack stormed out, Aaron turned to his dad. "And I thought he was scary before."

"To think, he would actually accuse you of something as ludicrous as helping one of those vermin! Where did I go wrong with him?"

"Uh dad, I think it's about time we headed to the town center. They'll need you there to help them decide what to do now that we don't have a prisoner."

"Oh, you're right! We'd better move!" With that, they both raced out of the jail, the memory of what just happened behind them.

At the same time, the Seviper had rejoined in the camp center, once again prepared to discuss their next course of action. Because of the return of Silvia's mother, the mood was rather light, as they realized that now, neither side had a hostage.

"I say we go with the old man's plan!" one random Seviper yelled. It was followed by a cheer of tails shooting up in the air in agreement. A good quarter of the camp raised their tails.

"Stop this." One of the town elders spoke up. He wasn't necessarily the oldest, but he was considered one of the wisest. "A rushed attack would only lead in casualties for both sides. Also, seeing as it is THEIR camp, they may be more prepared then we are, leading to more casualties on our side." Tails were lowered as they reluctantly agreed with him.

"We need to come up with something that doesn't involve just rushing in! If we did, we'd be no better then those horrible white devils!" A silence fell over the crowd at the elder's harsh words. "Now, does anyone else have any suggestions on what to do?"

"I do." The crowd parted like the red sea, as Cross stepped forward. Several Seviper cowered from him, while others where overjoyed to be in his wake. He seemed to walk with a certain air as he slithered forward, catching each elder with his good eye.

"What is your plan?

"What is your plan?" At the same time, the Zangoose council was meeting, the rest of the camp their audience. Not moments ago, Aaron's father, once known as Colt, had stepped forward with an idea. By a strange twist of fate, both meetings were happing at identical times.

"Well if memory has taught me anything, it's now that the Seviper don't have a hostage, they will be driven into a…"

"…Frenzy. When that occurs, they will be unable to act quick enough. Now would be the perfect time to…"

"…Take what is rightfully ours! While they run around chasing their own tails, claiming one more piece of land will be…"

"…Childs play. With this new area secure, we…"

"…Will be one step closer to forever ridding ourselves of those vile…"

"…Beastly savages know as…

"…The Seviper!"

"…The Zangoose!"

A unanimous cheer rang through both crowds. Among the crowds were both Aaron and Silvia, watching as their side agreed with the plan. Neither knew it yet, but both sides had come up with the same plan, at exactly the same time. As well, neither of them could resist as a smile spread across each other's face, as the final piece of the plan fall into place.

Leafs rustled through the forest, as two forces made their way through it. On each side, an army of life long enemies quickly mad either way to the forests center, unaware of the other side's movements. Among the Zangoose was Aaron, his father Colt, and Zack, though he stayed far in the back. Among the Seviper were Cross, Silvia and her mother.

As they made their way, the middle-aged serpent couldn't help but catch a glance at her daughter as she traveled beside her. Although she figured it was probably a lie, the words the Zangoose had said to her still rang through her head. Could it be true, could Silvia really have set that Zangoose free in exchange for her? She tried to purge these thoughts from her mind, but no matter how hard she tried, they kept resurfacing.

"Area in sight!" Silvia's mother looked up as one of the messages spoke out, for indeed the center of the forest was coming up. Moments later, the army of Seviper broke through the brush covering the area, just as the Zangoose did the same. For a moment, neither side moved, both in wonder of why the other side was here, as well as pure anger. The groups parted as Cross and the Zangoose once known as Colt stepped to the front of the hordes.

"What…" Cross stared at his rival with his good eye as he spoke, "…are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question. Trespassing in Zangoose territory."

"Zangoose territory?" Cross chuckled. "You must be mistaken. This is Seviper territory. Or, at least it will be once we take care of you." He brandished his bladed tail the second he finished speaking.

"Don't count on it." Colt responded as he extended his claws. Both rivals locked each other in their good eye, prepared to attack. They were about to, when they suddenly noticed something, something none of them had noticed when they had first stepped into the area.

It was filled with other Pokemon.

Both Zangoose and Seviper could only look in awe at what was around them. Mankey's swung from branch to branch while Oddish and Bellossom happily danced in the fields of flowers. Several Silcoon and Cascoon, as well as Seedot could be seen hanging from the trees, those same trees that held a variety of bird Pokemon, such as Pidgey and Swellow. Zigzagoon and Ferret had poked their heads out of their burrows to stare at the large group of Zangoose and Seviper.

While the rest stared in awe at the large group of Pokemon that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere, Silvia and Aaron just looked on with a smile. They both thought back to what had been said in the Seviper jail cell.

"_Even if our two sides are at war, there are laws in place. Laws to ensure that no one else will get tangled up in this war. One such law is that neither side is able to hold battle in a heavily populated area. An area with one or two other Pokemon is fine, but not a whole swarm, or flock of them. This, is where we come in."_

"_If you are able to, find some time to get away from this camp. Once you do, find every other Pokemon you can and tell them about the area. Tell them that it's basically a paradise; just make sure they'll go. Once they do, they will tell more and so on. I can even get someone who can help."_

_Silvia just smirked as she figured he meant Lark. Who else could get news through the forest as fast as he could?_

"_While you handle that, I'll be able to break your mother out of Zangoose jail. By this time, nether side will be with a hostage, so both will turn to any suggestion. If what you said about what Cross said is correct, he will want another shot at my dad. Either way, both sides will try and make one last stand for the area. If all goes as planned, neither side will have it."_

It couldn't of gone any more perfect. Both sides had acted on pure impulse, fueled by hatred for the other side. It was impulse that had led to the success of their plan.

"This…isn't possible." Muttered Colt, still in awe at what he was seeing.

"Apparently, it is." Stated Cross in a matter-of-fact tone of voice. Once again, both rivals locked their gaze, but both also knew what this meant.

"We will meet again, and next time, you won't be so lucky." Cross hissed as he turned away from his rival.

"You took the words right out my mouth." Was all Colt responded with, before turning away from the mob of serpents. " We're leaving." He responded to his troops.

A look of shock and disgust appeared on Zack's face. "Leaving?! But we could have had them! Why, when we are so close, do you chicken out…"

"Zack, you know the law! We cannot fight in such a populated area! We're leaving and that's final!" He gave his son one last look, before turning away from him. Zack looked ready to arguing once more, but he just growled and followed after his kind. As both sides made their way back to the camp, neither noticed that each had someone missing.

With their own kind in shock, it had been easy to slip away without being noticed. Even though they had accomplished what they had set out to do, it was a lukewarm victory. It may have stopped the fighting for now, but it would continue. The feud would remain and neither of them could do anything to stop it. A battle may have been stopped, but the war would remain. At the same time, a sense of worry continued to plague their thoughts.

Silvia slithered into a small clearing, not too far from the area she had just come from, but far enough to be away from peering eyes. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that she was alone, though she wished Aaron was here. Over the years, she had taken their time together for granted, silently hoping that it would last forever. But deep down, she had known that would never have been the case. Their kind was a war, a friendship like theirs could never last, she knew that. But it still didn't make losing it any easier.

As she stood there, her thoughts drifted to that moment in the Seviper jail. In his own way, Aaron had shown his true feelings for her, feelings she guessed he had kept bottled up for some time. But she felt regret and guilt as she realized she had never returned the favor. Sure they had kissed, but did he know how she felt for him? That her feelings were identical to his?

She was abruptly shaken from her thoughts when she heard moment to her right, the rustling of something moving through the leaves. She quickly readied her tail blade, prepared to defend herself against whatever may come. Seconds later, the rush of leaves parted, as a single figure stepped forward.

"Silvia!" Her bladed tail fell to the ground as Aaron stepped into the clearing. Tears started to well up in her eyes at the site of him, a site she never thought she would see again. Although there had been no blood on her mother's tail, she had still been worried that something could have happened to him.

"Aaron…" As the tears started to fall, she rushed towards him, as did Aaron to her. In the center of the small clearing, two friends met in a loving embrace. Silva rested her head against Aaron chest, as the tears continued to flow. She was finding it hard for the tears to stop.

"I…thought I would never see you again. When my mother returned…I feared that something could have happened…If she had hurt you…I would never…"

"Easy, everything's alright. Though I will admit the thought to do me in probably crossed her mind, but the moment I mentioned you, she was filled with concern for her daughter rather than anger for her enemy. She cares more for your safety then doing me harm."

Although the tears had stopped, the feeling of regret refused to leave. "Back in…back in the cell…you showed me how you really felt for me. I was so shocked, that I forgot to do the same for you." She looked up and stared right into the eyes of the person who had shown her happiness for several years now.

"Silvia…Are you trying to say…"

"I…I love you Aaron. I don't know how else to say it except in the simplest way. I'm sorry I didn't say anything earlier, I was just…

"Silvia…you don't have to apologize to me. I love you just the way you are, and nothing will ever change that." With that, no more words were spoken as the two met once again in a meeting of the lips, the world around them seeming to disappear around them, as only being in each other's company mattered now.

For a few moments, both were in pure bliss. But moments such as this have to end sometime, as it did moments later as both released for some air. Even so, neither could deny that they wished this moment wouldn't end.

"Well, we should get back before anyone notices we're gone."

"Yes, I suppose so." Parting, Aaron was about to leave, when he noticed Silvia hadn't moved.

"Silvia, you going back?"

"Yeah…I'll go in a minute."

"You sure you'll be fine by yourself?"

She just chuckled at his question. "Who do you think you're talking to?"

"Right, how silly of me. Well, I guess I'll see ya later." With that, he set off to catch up with his fellow Zangoose, leaving Silvia alone in the small clearing.

As she stood there, her mind was rushing with everything that had happened. She was in love with her best friend, a Zangoose no less, something that was thought by the rest of the world to be impossible. Maybe it was just the fact that it was impossible that made it that much sweeter. If two beings, thought to have been rivals since the dawn of time, could find happiness together, maybe there was hope after all.

She was about to head back, when she heard the sound of rustling from behind her. Had Aaron come back to…

She was taken by surprise as a pair of claws shot towards her head. She narrowly avoided them, before she got a look at her attacker. She saw what appeared to be a Zangoose, but none she had ever seen before. Its fur was ruffled up and out of shape, his breath coming in short, menacing grunts ending with a growl. What confused her more than his appearance was that fact that it had attacked her, as the leader of the group, Aaron's father, had called them back and no Zangoose or Seviper ever went against their leader, for it could mean their own death.

Silvia glared at the feral-looking Zangoose. "What are you doing here? Your leader called you back remember? The law says…"

"Forget that damn law!" His sudden outburst shocked Silvia "In fact, forget my so called "leader" and his stupid decisions! I don't care what he says! All I care about is ending the lives of you miserable serpents!"

With that, he pounced on her. Silvia quickly tried to avoid his attacks, but his moves were so chaotic, it was hard to predict how he was going to react. As she dodged another strike, she swung her bladed tail at the enraged Zangoose. A smile spread across his face, as he simply grabbed her tail as she swung, before throwing her headlong across the clearing, smacking right dab into a nearby tree. As she tried to get up, he ran up and grabbed her tightly by her throat, hoisting her up against the tree. Her tail hung loosely against the ground, held there by her assailant's foot.

The cat ferret Pokémon chuckled as he stared at his prey. His claws glinted in the light as he prepared for the kill. Silvia tried to retaliate, but she was unable to bite him because his hand clutching her next and her blade tail was pinned to the ground. After being filled with happiness, was this really how it was going to end?

Suddenly, as the attackers claws shot towards her throat, another white form streaked past, knocking the mad Zangoose away and releasing her from his grip. She gasped as she fell to the ground, gasping for breath. As she looked up, a smile spread across her face as she saw that her rescuer was none other than Aaron!

"Aaron…" Her voice was low enough that Aaron could hear her, but her attacker couldn't.

Aaron turned to her. "Get going. I'll stay here and take care of this guy."

"Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"Please, do you know who you're talking to?" Getting the picture, she quickly raced off, leaving Aaron alone to deal with the attacker. He turned to the Zangoose, who had just picked himself up from Aaron's last attack.

"What is the meaning of this! You know we were ordered to return to camp!" For a moment, the attacker was silent. But that soon ended, as a chuckle started to come from the Zangoose. The chuckle soon escalated into a laugh, before erupting into a psychotic fit of laughter.

"What are you doing here?" Aaron repeated, "Who are you?"

At his last question the laughing stopped. "What, you don't recognize me? That saddens me. I figured you would recognize you own family." With that he raised his head up into the light, revealing the two claw marks etched into his face, and unnerving smile plastered all over his face.

Aaron's breath caught in his throat at the shock of the identity of Silvia's attacker. "Z...Z…Zack?!"

Zack just chuckled again. "Hello…Brother."

**End Chapter**

Please review!


	8. Hello, Brother

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Pokémon.

"Hello..._Brother_."

Aaron's throat seemed dry up at the sight before him. It hadn't even been two minutes before he heard a commotion coming from where Silvia was. Thinking fast, he raced back, coming back just in the nick of time. Now that Silvia was out of harm's way, he had prepared to deal with this rogue Zangoose. That was... until he discovered it was his own brother.

"Z...Zack...what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question, _dear brother_." With each word that rolled out Zack's mouth, an unnerving feeling seemed to shoot through Aaron's whole body. Ever since their father, a Zangoose who had once gone by the name of Colt, had attacked his own son, leaving two claws marks forever etched into Zack's face, Zack had suddenly changed. His appearance had become more feral, making him look like some kind of wild, savage animal. Not just that, but it was almost like he had become surrounded by a poisonous aura, cloaking the area around him in a chocking miasma.

"Well...I...I came to get any stragglers. We were ordered to return to camp immediately."

"Oh yes...Dear old daddy told us to ignore an entire swarm of Seviper, just right for the picking, in favour of some _law_." He shut his eyes for a moment, seemingly in thought, before turning to Aaron. "Tell me brother... do you believe he made the right call?"

"Of course. He knows that even in war, such laws must be put in place to maintain order."

Zack just chuckled at Aaron's response. "Order...Laws...what trivial ideals. In war, there can be no order, only beautiful chaos. The only law that should apply is "to kill or be killed", the law of survival! In war, there should be no compromises, no ceasefires, no retreats, only pure chaos and bloodshed!" Once again, Zack let loose with a fit of psychotic laughter. It lasted another moment before he stopped, a smile plastered on his face that made Aaron increasingly uneasy.

"But hey, I guess that's what separates you and me. You believe in anything our _Father_ tells us, and in such ideals and laws. As for me..." He raised his claws before his face, casting his gaze over them while at the same time keeping his eyes on Aaron. Then, in one clear breath, he said...

"I think he's better off dead."

If Aaron had had the time, he would have gasped in shock. He didn't even have five seconds, before Zack shot towards him like missile. Thinking fast, more on instinct then anything, he dove from Zack's path, using all four paws to keep himself steady. The feral Zangoose just turned, the unnerving smile still on his face, before once again making a charge towards his brother. Aaron once again parried the attack, only this time, Zack's claws dug deep into a tree that had been behind Aaron.

As Zack tried to yank his claws free, the feeling of shock finally registered. For a moment, he was at a loss for words. When he finally found his voice, he was both shocked as well as outraged.

"What is the meaning of this Zack? Why would you just attack me out of the blue? And what do you mean "He's better off dead?"

Zack just chuckled psychotically before turning his venomous gaze onto his brother. "You really are slow, little brother. I meant exactly that, he's better off stone cold dead." With one strong pull of his arm, his claws came free, violently tearing the bark from the trunk. His eyes were filled with the look of a killer staring at its prey.

"As would you." Once again, he charged, his claws aimed for Aaron's heart. This time though, he was ready for him. When he came within striking distance, Aaron quickly ducked, before driving his fist into Zack's gut. Zack hacked as the wind was knocked out of him, distracting him long enough for Aaron to deliver a swift kick, knocking him back a few feet. Zack just laughed in response.

"Very good little bro. I guess this won't be as boring as I thought."

"Zack, stop this! I don't want to fight you."

"Awww...and just when I was starting to enjoy myself. Well, if you won't fight back...then I'll kill you were you stand!" With that, his right paw suddenly started to glow. He was preparing to use Crush claw, a move well known among Zangoose. It was a move with forcibly tore at the opponent, a move strong enough to rip through the hardest of Seviper scales. But to use it on a fellow Zangoose...

Once again, Zack rushed his brother, his claw waving chaotically through the air. Aaron tried to dodge them all, but he was having the same problem Silvia had. Zack's attacks were too chaotic to predict making it harder to dodge. Aaron winced in pain as the claws make contact, etching three gashed on his chest, the fur practically ripped from his body.

"Come on! Fight me! Make this more interesting!" Zack taunted him as his attacks became more frantic, some coming within inches of their intended target. Aaron had to think fast if he was going to stop Zack, as well as stay alive.

As Zack dove for another attack, Aaron quickly grabbed Zack just below his wrist, while at the same time grabbing onto the fur on his chest. Using Zack's own momentum, as well as his own strength, he lifted his feral attacker over his head, before hurtling him through the air. Zack tumbled through the air for a few seconds, before crashing back first into a nearby tree, the force of which actually caused a large dent to form in the bark of the tree. He seemed to hang there for a second, before falling to the ground, motionless.

Aaron just stood there, panting as he tried to catch his breath. His brain was moving a hundred miles an hour as he tried to take in what had just happened. Not only had he been attacked by his own brother (his own flesh and blood!), but he had intended to kill him, as well as their own father! It was then that he thought back to the night before. Zack had suggested leaving him to the Sevipers, basically abandoning him to whatever fate they would have had in store for a Zangoose prisoner. All he had gotten for it was a fierce slash across the face by their father's claws. Had that lead him to this, to attacking his own family out of malice?

It was then that Aaron noticed a sound he hadn't heard before. It sounded like...chuckling? Casting his gaze over his brother's motionless body, he saw it twitch for a moment, before Zack picked himself back up, once again laughing in a psychotic way. He kept his eyes fixed on the ground not even attempting to look at his brother.

"Well, looks like I underestimated you. Now it's time I got...serious." With a toothy grin, a glow appeared on his hand once again. Aaron prepared to dodge another Crush claw, until he noticed something unusual. The glow seemed to emanate from his right arm, surrounding Zack's entire body with an ominous blue energy. In seconds, Zack's body was silhouetted by a strange, blue aura. Aaron had never seen anything like this, nor had he ever heard of something like this ever happening.

"I was hoping to save this for use on dear old daddy, but in this case, I'll make an exception." Baring his claws, he prepared for another attack. Aaron raised his claws to defend himself, when it happened.

There was just a flash. No warning, no indication. Just a blue flash, before Zack appeared to disappear. For a moment, time seemed to stand still. The breeze had fallen dead, any leaves suspended motionless in mid air. The trees, which were rustling a moment ago, fell silent. Aaron didn't even seem to breathe as everything remained frozen. The spell was broken by the sound of a snicker from behind him, before...

The sound of flesh tearing and the smell of blood filled the air, as Aaron's right shoulder seemed to just explode. A wave of blood shot from the wound, staining anything in its path a literal blood red. Pain shot through his entire body, the force of the apparent invisible attack actually caused him to stumble in step, before falling to his knees and collapsing face first onto the grass. A blood pool started to form beneath his right arm, which was now stained red from the dripping blood.

For a moment, Aaron was unsure if what had just happened had actually happened. One moment, he was prepared to defend himself, the next, his shoulder had been shredded to bits. He strained to pick himself up, before the solid white foot of Zack came crashing down on his injured arm. Aaron had to fight the urge to scream in pain, before looking up at his brother. Zack had a look of accomplishment all over his face...and blood dripping from his claws.

"But...how...?" was all Aaron could say as pain erupted from his shoulder once again.

Zack just laughed in response before looking down at his fallen brother, his foot still rested on his blood soaked arm. "What you just witness, dear _brother_, was the move Aerial Ace. An attack so fast, it is impossible to defend against it."

Aaron had heard of Aerial Ace. It was a move commonly used by flying types. But how had Zack been able to do it? Zangoose couldn't learn Aerial Ace! He must have said the last part out loud, because Zack responded to his question.

"True, Zangoose can't learn Aerial Ace. Not naturally anyway. But thanks to a little device known as a TM, anything is possible." Zack once again started laughing psychotically, something that seemed to becoming a habit for him.

The words his father had said to Zack the night before came rushing back to him. _"Now, you listen here. No one, not even you are to talk about him that way. He was a better son then you ever were! He never needed to use something to make himself stronger! If anything, you're the weak one!"_

"Dad...knew..."

"Yes...He always seemed to prefer you over me. Figured if I could do something you couldn't, then that would make me his favourite. When I found that TM so long ago, I thought it was gift from heaven. But when I showed him what I could do, he wasn't proud. He was disgusted with me. Said that I had sullen his name by using something to make myself stronger. He said I was never to use it again, or there would be consequences. Back then, I truly believed that he was ashamed of me, but now, I know better. He wasn't ashamed. He was jealous." With that, Zack ground his foot against Aaron's injured arm, pain shooting through his entire body as he fought back tears of pain.

"He was jealous that I could do something he couldn't. Jealous that I was now stronger then would ever be. He was jealous that I had thought of it before he had." Each time he said the word "jealous", he just ground harder and harder. Suddenly, he stopped. Aaron had shut his eyes from the pain, so he was confused as to why he had stopped. Opening his eyes, he saw Zack looking down at his blood soaked arm, as if noticing something.

"What's this..." Reaching down, he grabbed something on Aaron's arm, and practically tore it off, causing another jolt of pain to shoot through his arm. Looking up, he gasped as he saw what it was Zack was holding. It was his band, his of the two bands that he had found so long ago. He had given the second one to Silvia, as a symbol of their bond, their friendship, and now, their love.

"Give...that...back." Aaron croaked out as he tried to get up. Now that Zack wasn't standing on his arm, he was able to get up, though it hurt like hell when he tried.

Zack just looked at him. "Shut up." He responded before literally kicking Aaron while he was down. As he turned his gaze back towards the band, a mischievous grin formed on his face. "Well...if it means that much to you...I guess I'd better treat this with _special _care." With that, he began to crush the band in the palm of his hand. It wasn't long before cracks started to form along the edges.

"Stop it!" Aaron begged him, but his pleas went unheard. Just as he pulled himself to his feet, the band shattered into pieces. As the fragments fell to the ground, they seemed to move in slow motion, as if taunting him that something that had meant so much to him was now in pieces. As the pieces hit the ground, Zack added further insult to injury, as he crushed the pieces beneath his foot, laughing maniacally as he did so.

"Oh, I'm sorry! Did I break your..." He never got to finish his smug taunting, as he was suddenly smacked from behind. As he turned around to retaliate, he was hit across the face before being kicked hard in the chest, knocking him back into another tree.

Aaron just stood there, trying to fight back the pain. He was holding his left paw against his shoulder to try and stop the bleeding. But right now, he was more angry then hurt. Zack had destroyed the very symbol of his bond with Silvia, and he would make sure he would soon regret ever doing it.

As Zack got back up, he felt the feeling of blood running down his face. When Aaron had hit him across the face, he had actually cut him with his claws. But in his insanity filled mind, he didn't care. He didn't care if he was torn to shreds! All he cared about was ending the miserable lives of his miserable family starting with his brother, followed by his jealous father.

"Well, well. Looks like you've decide to get serious. And all it took was for me to destroy that meaningless trinket."

"It wasn't meaningless!" Aaron practically shouted in rage. "I meant more to me then you could ever imagine. And I'll make sure you pay for destroying it!" The pain of his shoulder seemed to lessen, as a new strength flowed into him. He didn't know whether it was his rage for his brother or his feelings for Silvia that was giving him new strength.

"Big words. But can you...back them up?" Zack responded with a smirk. Baring his claws, he charged his brother. Aaron dodged as best he could, before head butting Zack in the head. This proved to catch him off guard, as he stumbled back from the blow. This gave Aaron the chance to retaliate, as he used his blood soaked claw to once again attack, cutting a gash across the feral Zangoose's chest. But Zack's response to the attack was something Aaron hadn't expected.

He erupted into another fit of psychotic laughter. These seemed to becoming more frequent with each passing moment. The pain of the attack seemed to be non-existent, like it had been nothing more than a small scrape. "You call that an attack! That was nothing!" With that, the blue energy once again surrounded Zack's body, before he shot forward like a missile. Aaron had no time to react as he was struck down, sending him tumbling back. The force of the impact was so great, that he shot straight into a nearby tree, almost snapping it clean in half.

As he slumped against the ground, the strength he had felt before vanished, leaving behind only pain and torment. Before he could get back up, he was shoved up against the tree, Zack's paw on his throat. The claws on his other paw were already drawn, ready to inflict any addition damage.

"Well...looks like your words were just that. Words. They had no strength or power, they just delayed the inevitable." Zack chuckled as he prepared to finish what he started. He was about to, when...

The bushes to his right started to rustle. Still keeping his claws trained on Aaron, he turned towards them. Suddenly, something red shot from the bushes, heading straight for him. In instinct, he slashed the projectile apart with his claws. As he did this, a red dust shot from the object, covering his whole face. It was then that he realised, too late, what it was he had just destroyed.

It was a berry. A Tamato berry, a berry famous for its spices. As the dust covered his face, Zack screamed in pain as the spices entered into his eyes, causing them to water. He desperately scratched at his face, trying to rub the spices off his face. In doing so, he released Aaron from his death grip, his body slumping to the ground from pain. As Aaron tried to lift his head up, his body in excruciating pain, he heard the sound of movement from behind him. It wasn't the sound of footsteps though.

"Aaron! Are you alright?" Aaron struggled to lift his head up, looking into the worried eyes of Silvia.

"I've...been...better." He tried to chuckle, but it just caused more pain to shoot through him. "What...what are you doing here? I told you to run!"

"I came back to help."

"Get out of here! He's too powerful for you!"

"No, I not about to lose you!"

"Well, well. Isn't this a surprise." Both Silvia and Aaron turned to see Zack staring at them with a smug look on his face. He had gotten rid of most of the spices from the Tamato berry, though his eyes were still red and watery.

"Not only is my brother worthless, but he's been consorting with you dirty serpents all along! Oh, this is too good to be true!" Zack once again laughed his psychotic laugh. "Well, now this makes things a whole lot easier for me."

"How so?" Silvia responded, her tail ready in case she needed to defend herself.

"Once I bring both your corpses back to the camp, I'll be hailed as a hero. This will give me the perfect opportunity to finish off the other worthless members of my so called _family. _If the rest of the camp accuse me of murder, I'll just say that every last one of them were in league with the Seviper. Why wouldn't they believe me?"

"You're a monster." Silvia hissed at him.

He laughed at her response. "This, coming from a worthless bag of scales. But you won't have to worry about any of this. Soon, you Seviper will be nothing more than a bad memory."

"We'll see about that." Silvia's tail suddenly started glowing a bright purple as she prepared to attack with Poison tail. As Zack readied his claws, Silvia charged him. Aaron called out for her to stop, be she didn't listen. When they came within striking distance, Zack slashed down towards her. Silvia quickly maneuvered her tail around his attack, before driving her tail blade across his side, leaving a deep gash that started to bleed. Zack took one look at the injury, before...smiling at her. Silvia was shocked by this, so shocked that she didn't hear Aaron yell out, until Zack grabbed her by the throat and slammed her hard into the ground. Silvia hacked as her body hit earth, with Zack looking down at her with his creepy smile.

"Even though I would love to end your miserable life right here, I have something else to take care of first." Releasing her from his grip, he ran right past her, When Silvia looked up, her eyes widened in shock when she saw where he was going.

"Aaron! Look out!"

Aaron could hardly move, let alone defend himself. So when Zack ran up to him and once again hoisted him up against the tree, he didn't have the strength to resist. He could only look on as Zack drew his claws, smirking up at him.

"Now, to do what I should have done a long time." With that Zack's claws shot through the air. The sound of tearing flesh seemed to echo through the air, as Zack drew his claws back, covered in blood. Releasing his grip, Aaron's body slumped to the ground, a pool of blood starting to form from a deep gash in his neck. Zack just smiled at the scene before him.

"Farewell..._brother_."

Silvia could only stare on at what she had just witnessed. Her voice ran dry as tears started to stream down her face. When her voice did return, all she could do was scream.

"AARON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

**End Chapter**

_Author:_ _I'm evil, aren't I? Anyway, before you go, I have a few things to say. For starters, this story will soon be coming to a close, (as you can well imagine). There are maybe two chapters (at the most) left. I hope your looking forward to them after the cliff-hanger I've just unleashed. Second, I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed this story so far, special notice goes to Attila12, who has been a constant help with your frequent reviews, as well as Mechagodzilla128, who's last review really...caught me off guard, to say the least. And my third and final thing is...PLEASE REVIEW!_


	9. Retribution

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.**

An ominous wind blew through the forest, causing the tree branches to rustle in the sudden breeze. Every inhabitant of the forest suddenly got a feeling of remorse, like a great tragedy had just occurred. Little did any of them know how right they were.

The body of Aaron lay still in the swaying grass; the once green landscape now stained a deep red. A blood pool was starting to form beneath his motionless body, the blood running from a deep gash in his neck like a never-ending river of crimson. Standing over him was another Zangoose, though he hardly resembled one. One could describe his appearance as something straight from the pits of hell, a horrid being usually reserved for the darkest of nightmares. His eyes seemed to reflect not a soul, but pure malice.

Zack smiled as he looked down at the body of his brother. _Brother…_the very mention of the word filled him with disgust. He had always hated his brother, but the very thought of committing such a crime like this never crossed his mind. That was, until the very night his father, their camp's leader, had struck him out of rage, forever etching his hate for him in the form of two jagged scars cutting across his face. From there, a deep hatred began to form. Not only for his brother, but his entire family as well.

Gazing down at his claws, blood dripped down onto the ground like the blood soaked blades of warriors long forgot. Soon, it would the blood of his parents being spilled by his very claws. But first, he had to take care of something else. For even in his anger, he couldn't shake the deep loathing for those vile, scaled beasts: the Seviper.

Tears streamed down Silvia's face like rain as she looked on at the scene before her. She had come back to try and help Aaron, but her efforts had been next to useless to stop his psychotic brother. The sight of his claws ripping through her best friend's neck, as well as Aaron's body slumping limply to the ground remained fresh in her mind. Yet even by the sheer horror of it all, she found she couldn't turn away. Her eyes remained focused on the blood dripping from the wound in Aaron's neck.

"Well, now that he's out of the way…I can take care of you." As he spoke, he ran his bloodstained claw across his tongue, the taste of the fresh blood filling his mouth. "I wonder what your blood will take like? Probably foul…"

"H…How…"

"Hmm, what was that?"

"How could you kill him, your own brother, and act like it was nothing!"

"What's the difference, he was nothing. Nothing but a thorn in my side since the very day he came into my life."

"No, he wasn't nothing. He was everything to me. Aaron…Aaron was my friend!"

Zack just laughed. "Like that means anything coming from you. The fact that he would even consort with you vile things proved even more how worthless he was! But, if you feel so much about him, you won't have to for long. In a moment, you'll be joining him." Stepping over his brother's body, he drew his claws as he slowly began to advance towards Silvia.

"When you see him in hell, tell him I said hi." Like a flash, he shot towards Silvia, his claws ready to strike. Silvia remained glued to the spot, as still as a statue. She didn't even move when he was standing before her. Wearing the same look of joy on his face as when he attacked Aaron, he struck.

The sound of something striking against another rang through the air, soon dieing to a low humming. The look of a joyous killer was gone, replaced by a look of shock. In a fraction of a second, Silvia had reacted, using her bladed tail to block his claws. A glint of gold averted his eyes to a small band on her tail, an identical to the one he had destroyed moments ago. Returning his attention to Silvia, he saw that her head was lowered, her eyes fixed onto the ground.

"What gives you the right to take an innocent life? Is it the feeling of power, that you have felled a creature you considered weaker then yourself? Or do you just enjoy watching the life vanish from another creatures eyes?"

To say that Zack was confused by these questions would be an understatement. "What is this gibberish you're spouting? What does it matter why? I kill because I can!"

"Such a naïve answer. I'd expect nothing less…from scum like you." As she raised her head, her face was revealed. The fires of rage shone brightly in her eyes, almost as bright as Zack's. Her once calm expression was gone, replaced by a look of someone seeking retribution.

"I'll make you pay for ever existing, you Zangoose scum!" Sparks flew through the air as Zack's claws scraped against the blade, pushing him back. Before he could strike again, her tail wrapped around his wrist of the same arm. In one fluid flick of her tail, she flung him through the air like he was nothing.

Blades of grass fluttered through the air as Zack recovered from the attack, his paws scraping against the ground from the force of the throw. He scowled as his eyes locked with Silvia's. Neither of them spoke, but both knew that in that moment, a challenge had been issued. A challenge with which only one would come out alive.

Favoring haste over cleverness, the bloodthirsty beast once known as Zack charged his opponent. Silvia didn't even flinch when he came near, simply using her tail to block his attack. This cause Zack to growl in anger, as he tried repeated to strike, only to have his attempts blocked or parried. His blood was beginning to boil in frustration.

"Hold still you blasted serpent!!"

"Why should I?" She simply responded in a smug, slithery tone. She didn't even seem to be breaking a sweat as she effortlessly avoided his attacks.

"Why you…" Leaping backwards, a blue aura once again surrounded his body as he prepared to unleash another Aerial ace. He chuckled, as he knew that unlike his other attacks, this one wouldn't be blocked.

"Try and block this!" With one kick of his leg, he shot through the air. Silvia just smiled at this.

"Gladly." The moment she spoke, a billow of smoke suddenly flowed from her mouth, surrounding her in a pitch-black cloud of smog. Zack shot through the cloud, the smoke rippling as he entered and exited. Looking behind him, he waited for the smoke to clear, waiting for the inevitable conclusion.

What he got was a complete shock. When the smokescreen cleared, Silvia was still standing, not a scratch on her. A path of grass next to her was crushed, showing the course of Zack's trajectory.

"I…I missed? Impossible! Aerial ace cannot miss!"

Silvia just responded, "Can't hit what you can't see." As she spoke, her tail began to glow a bright purple. With a glint in her eye, she sharply swung her tail through the air. Zack attempted to dodge, but wasn't quick enough, as the edge of her blade caught his jaw.

This caused him to stumble back. Blood began to drip from the cut on the side of his face, but he didn't care. Pain was no longer something he was acquainted with. A deep growl of frustration rose up from his throat as he tried to retaliate with a Crush Claw. The attack stuck the end of her bladed tail, a loud clang echoing through the air. Zack tried putting as much force as he could, but Silvia still seemed to be holding him back with ease.

"Pathetic. All you Zangoose scum are the same." Once again, she pushed back the attack with ease, but this time, it was her chance to strike. Her tail sliced forward, only stopping once it had hit its target. Blood spewed forward, covering the tip of her tail as she drew it back.

Zack's paw was held up to his face, as blood began to pour from the spot where his right eye had once been. The crimson liquid ran between his fingers, pooling in heavy blots beneath his feet. He stared at her with his remaining eye, the fires of rage burning brighter than they ever had.

"Now, what should I take next? Your other eye, or maybe your ear?"

"You slimy demon! I'll rip your very heart from your body!" Even more enraged then before, he swung his claws out wildly. Hindered by the loss of one eye, none of his attacks were even coming close to hitting. In anger, he unleashed another Aerial ace, which Silvia quickly responded with another smog of smokescreen. As he passed through the other side, he attacked again. And again, and again, hoping that at least one of his attacks would hit its mark.

After a minute or two of this, he stood panting before the cloud. Once again, the smoke cloud dissipated, only this time, it was empty. Silvia had disappeared. The ferine Zangoose snarled at the thought of the cowardice serpent escaping. She couldn't be far. Stepping from the clearing back into the forest, he quickly scanned the trees, looking for any signs of his scaly adversary.

"Is this what its come to? Running in fear! I knew you worthless beasts were cowards, I didn't realize you skipped out in the middle of fights!" Several birds flew off from the trees at the sound of his voice. He shot out at a nearby tree in rage, scratching away the bark with his claws. He became increasingly agitated with each passing moment.

"STOP HIDING AND FIGHT ME!!!!"

"Who's hiding?" Before he could turn around, he was whipped hard in the back of the head. As he hit the ground, sound of something dropping from a branch onto the ground reached his ears. As Zack tried to get back up, he felt something wrap around his ankle, before being hoisted into the air.

Silvia smiled as she looked up at him. Zack just scowled again and tried to reach out to claw her eyes out, but he was being held out of arms reach.

"Now, how should I do this? Should I make it slow and painful, or quick and merciless? Decisions…decisions…" Once again, Zack was hurtled through the air, crashing hard against a nearby tree. Before he could even pick himself up, he saw a flash, before a feeling his sanity-deprived mind had thought to have forgotten coursed through him. Pain. Extreme pain. Slowly his eyes were drawn downward, where most of his once white fur was now stained red with blood. If Zack could have looked behind him, he would have seen the end of Silvia's bladed tail, protruding straight through his back.

As his lungs began to fill up with blood, a lot of it forcing its way up his throat and into his mouth, he looked up into the eyes of his killer. Silvia's eyes were not ones of a killer, or even of hunter. Her eyes reflected the same thing as every Seviper or Zangoose: a deep hatred for the other species. Even in extreme pain and with a mouth full of his own blood, he croaked out his final words.

"…Damn serpent…."

With a sickening sound, Silvia yanked the blade from Zack's body. With nothing to hold him up, his body slumped to the ground. Silvia stood over him, swinging her now red tail behind her.

"Good riddance you Zangoose…scum…" Like a departing storm, the look of pure hatred vanished from Silvia's face. She was confused; the last thing she remembered was seeing Zack advancing towards her and then…nothing. How had she gotten here, how-

It was then that she noticed Zack's body. All words escaped her at the sight of the body, all cut up and mutilated. It looked like it had been done by a…no…it couldn't be! Her hopes of being wrong were instantly shattered, the moment she saw her tail. Zack's blood was still dripping across her scales, turning them from their darkest black to brightest red. Her blood stained blade stood out like a symbol of the horrors she had just unknowingly committed.

"No…no…I couldn't have…could I?" Nothing seemed to make sense any more. Her entire world seemed to be coming crashing around her. The last thing she could remember was a sudden feeling sweeping over her. A familiar feeling…It didn't take her long to realize where she remembered it from. It was the same thing that had clouded her mind during the Marking! The feeling of pure rage and hatred washing over you, warping your very thoughts. She had only been able to escape it's dark hold on her with Aaron's help but…

Aaron…

With a flurry of thoughts still plaguing her mind, she rushed back towards the clearing, trying to put what had just happened behind her. Upon coming back, her eyes were immediately drawn to the only speck of white in the area: Aaron's motionless body. Rushing over, she quickly flipped him onto his back, where most of the blood had been absorbed into his fur. Any skin showing through his fur was deathly pale.

"Aaron…Aaron, speak to me!" She got nothing back in response. She tried again, and still failed to receive a response. The feeling of dread was slowly beginning to rise up in her.

"No…no it can't be. You can't die. If I lose you…then what do I have left to live for! This just can't happen!" She couldn't stop the flood of tears as they cascaded down her face, dripping onto the grass below. "I'm sorry! This was all my fault! You only got hurt trying to protect me!"

"_Sil…vi…a…"_

Her head snapped back up. The sudden voice had been barely a whisper, more like a moan, but had it been real, or was she just hearing things-

"_Sil..via…"_

That time she knew she wasn't hearing things. As the tears stopped and her vision became clearer, she looked down at Aaron's body, a small sense of hope piercing through the dread. Could it be?

"Aaron…?" Her suspicions were confirmed; as she saw his lips move as he tried to speak again.

"_Silvia…_"

Her face lit up as hope began to spread through her. He was alive! Barely, but alive still. That meant there was a chance she could save him!

"_Silvia…don't…" _With each word he struggled to say, more and more blood continued to stream out through his open wound. Thinking, fast, Silvia quickly tried applying pressure to the wound with her body. She felt blood ooze out onto her scales as his life continued to leave him.

"Don't try and talk. It's only making you bleed out more. "

"…_Don't…don't…" _

" I said not to talk! It's only making it worse!" But even with her warning, he still struggled to gasp for breath to speak.

"..._Don't…blame…yourself…"_

Even in this moment, she couldn't help but smile. Here he was, knocking on death's door, and he still worried about her blaming herself. Aaron will always be Aaron…

It's at times like this, that fate has to intervene. The sound of rustling leaves and approaching footsteps averted her attention. Moments later, several figures stepped from the bush. All color drained from her face she recognized the beings before her.

Three Zangoose had stepped from behind the trees. It wasn't the other two who worried her, but their leader. For he was none other than Colt, Zack and Aaron's father. Shock was painted all over his face at the scene, which lay before him. Not only was his son lying there, blood soaked and beaten, but a Seviper was standing over him as well. A Seviper with a tail blade covered completely in Zangoose blood, as well as having her tail wrapped tightly around Aaron's neck. Like any Zangoose, he immediately jumped to one conclusion.

"Murderous Serpent! You'll pay for taking my son from me!"

"No…I…"

"Don't even try to defend yourself! In taking the life of my son, you've sealed yours!" With a battle cry echoing from his throat, all three Zangoose charged. Silvia could have been able to take one of them, but not an entire hunting team, especially with Aaron's life hanging in the balance.

Time seemed to move in slow motion, as thoughts flew through her head like angry Beedril. _Was this really how it would end? Would both of them die before this day was over? Was this her punishment for ending the life of another? _With no answers to these questions, she shut her eyes as she waited for the end.

It never came. Instead, she heard the sound of one or more of them calling out, before she felt a harsh wind suddenly flow by her. Risking a look, she saw that a shadow was covering both of them. She looked up at the shadow's owner and saw a huge blue bird standing between her and Colt. His appearance may of changed since the last time she saw him, but Silvia knew deep down who it was.

"Lark!" Said bird looked over his shoulder at the sound of his name.

'Looks like I got here just in time. I'll take it from here."

Colt snarled at the sudden intruder. "Get out of the way! We have business with her!"

"Well, I'm sorry but she's busy right now. May you be willing to come back oh…never?" He chuckled as Colt's snarl only grew louder at his remark.

"If you won't move, we'll be forced to remove you ourselves!"

"I'd like to see you try." Before Colt and his team could make due on their threat, Lark's body became bathed in a bright light. Seconds later, copies of him began to shoot from his body, creating a ring of duplicates around Colt and his team.

"There, this Double Team should provide us with enough time to escape." Turning to Silvia, he lowered himself onto his belly and extended his wings to their full length.

"Hurry, get on! I'm gonna get you two out of here!"

"But, Aaron…"

"Don't worry…I'm the smoothest of fliers!" Even in a pressure filled moment such as this, Lark couldn't help but inflate his ego. Knowing full well what Lark could do, Silvia quickly slithered up Lark's wing onto his back, being careful not to move Aaron's body too much.

"Okay, we're on."

"Aright then! Now hold on tight!" With one powerful stroke of his wings, he was off. As Colt cut down the last of the Lark duplicates, he looked up in time to see Lark take off into the sky. A scowl covered his face as he realized he could do nothing to stop them.

As Silvia tried to hang on as Lark flew on, she felt Aaron's body become almost weightless in her grip. She glanced over in time to see his eyes sink back in his head, his face looking devoid of any emotion or life.

"Hold on! Just hold on a little bit longer! Please, don't leave me!" The sound of Silvia's desperate pleas echoed behind them as they flew off into the distance, becoming nothing more then a blue speck in contrast to the never-ending horizon.

**End Chapter**

_Will Aaron live? Well, I'll try and post the next (and last) chapter in a few days, so you won't have to wait long to find out. I actually can't believe that it's been almost a year since I started this and now it's finally coming to a close. Again, I would like to thank everyone who has supported me by their helpful comments and their patience in waiting through my times of writers block. I hope you will continue this and review this latest chapter! _


	10. Sunrise

_You've all been waiting, so here it is! The final chapter of _Feuded love! _I actually never thought I would finish this, but I have been wrong before. This chapter will answer the one question I'm sure your all "dying" to know!_

_(bad pun crowd starts booing)_

_Ignoring them, will Aaron live? Well...read on and find out! Oh, and I also have a surprise at the end of this chapter! Now you have something to look forward to! So, without further ado, I give you...chapter ten!_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.**

Silvia looked out at the horizon as the last bit of night slowly began to disappear. Several days had already passed since Zack's attack on Aaron and, if he hadn't of been stopped, his entire family. Since then, a craggy cliff overlooking the sea had been their home. A small cluster of trees lay behind her, providing enough cover for them to hide in. Lark had already left, saying he had to get back to his family before they started to worry. Silvia was worried if him returning to the forest was a good idea. Lark, being Lark, had just shrugged it off, saying, "No Zangoose or Seviper could ever catch me!" before flying off into the distance, possible being the last time she would ever see him again.

As Silvia looked out over the cliff, tears started to well up in her eyes, as the events of the last few days remained fresh in her mind. It had taken forever to wash all the blood off her tail blade but, even then, the image remained. The image of Aaron, lying motionless in the grass as his brother remained impaled on her tail, their blood staining the ground below.

"I'm sorry…." Her voice seemed to flow with the wind as the tears started, running down the side of her face.

"Sorry about what?" Silvia's tears stopped for a moment as she turned, seeing the bandaged form of Aaron standing behind her.

The Zangoose had certainly seen better days. His voice was coarse because of the bandages wrapped tightly around his neck to stop the bleeding. His right arm was kept in a sling of vines, while covered in a makeshift cast Lark had "donated" several of his feathers to make. His left leg was broken in several places, requiring him to use a branch as a walking stick. He also had an assortment of cuts and bruises all over his chest and face. He was in pain, but alive.

"Oh, you're awake."

He just shrugged. "I never was one to sleep in."

"Shouldn't you rest though? I mean, you did almost lose half your blood in one day."

"What, and miss witnessing the morning sun with you? Not even the pain I'm in can stop me."

"I guess…" Silvia didn't say anything further as he hobbled next to her. Neither of them spoke as the moon began to slowly dip towards the horizon, an invisible tension hovering between them.

"Something's bothering you, isn't it?" Silvia was startled by Aaron's sudden question. She quickly turned her head to try and hide the remnants of tears still present on her face.

"N…nothing's wrong. I'm just fine."

"Silvia…you and I both know that's a lie." She felt his eyes burrowing into her, with only filled her with more despair.

"Really…nothing's-"

"You were crying when I walked up behind you. You can't tell me there's nothing wrong and expect me to believe it." She didn't have a response for that. What could she say, after being caught in her sorry attempt at a lie.

"Just tell me. What's wrong?"

"…Everything."

"Pardon?"

"…Everything's wrong. You almost died! Not only that, but now both of us are on the run from our own kind! All…all because of me!"

"That's not tr-"

"Yes it is!" She was practically screaming now, not even trying to hide the flood of tears cascading down her face. "It's because of me that you almost died! If I hadn't of run and left you alone with Zack, then none of this would have happened!" She turned her head, as she couldn't even look at him because of all the trouble she had caused them. She had only been crying for a moment, when she felt Aaron's paw on the side of her face. Looking up, she saw Aaron looking down on her, a look of sympathy on his face.

"Stop blaming yourself. I was the one who asked you to leave, and even then you were brave enough to come back and help me even against someone such as my brother. If you hadn't of come back, I would have died for sure. I'm still alive because you had the strength to fight him."

"But…I killed your brother…your own flesh and blood."

Aaron turned from her, looking out into the horizon once more.

"True…I will miss my brother deeply…but from the moment I was born, Zack never seemed to like me. It was only a matter of time before he took an attempt on my life. As much as it pains me to say this…he deserves what he got."

Aaron crouched down until he was eye level with Silvia. "So please…" he said, looking deeply into her eyes, "No more crying okay?"

Silvia slowly nodded before wiping the tears from her eyes. As she did, she turned to see the sun slowly rising above the sea, shining the first few rays of light on the land below. The water sparkled like diamonds as the light pierced through the darkness of night. It was a sight to behold, a sight that both of them would remember well into their days.

"It's beautiful."

"You know, I heard somewhere that if two people make a promise during the first few moments of the sunrise, that promise will remain forever."

"Oh really? Well, how about we test that then?" Bending her tail back, she dragged it against the ground, before with one quick flick; the gold band flew off before being caught in mid air. Holding the band between them, she looped the end of her tail through it as Aaron grabbed onto the other side (seeing how his was destroyed).

"By this band, I promise…"

"I promise…" Aaron repeated.

"…That I, Silvia Seviper…"

"…And I, Aaron Zangoose…

"…Will be together…"

"…Together…"

"Forever." They both said in unison. As they finished, the sun came in perfect alignment with the golden ring, giving the illusion that they were holding the sun in their hands. Still holding the ring, they both look up, staring deeply into each other's eyes. Slowly, their faces began to inch closer and closer, before meeting between them in a kiss. They held the kiss for a few seconds, before parting, returning their gaze to the sunrise.

As Silvia returned the ring to its spot on her tail, a thought crossed her mind. "Now what happens? We're both on the run from our own kind. Where will we do now?"

Aaron thought about this for a minute before answering, "I don't know what the future might hold, but there is one thing I do know. I know that this isn't the end for us. This is only…the beginning."

Silvia responded with a slight chuckle. "That was cheesy."

Aaron let out a similar laugh. "I know. Now, how about we look for something to eat? I'm starving!"

"Alright then, just try not to slow me down!" As she said this, Silvia quickly slithered past the limping Aaron.

"Oh ya? I can still beat you in a race even with only one leg!" True to his word, he picked up speed and was soon right behind her.

As they headed into the nearby forest, they both started laughing. It was amazing that after all that had happened; these two could still laugh and have some fun. Even though it did sound cheesy, what Aaron had said was true. This was the beginning…of the rest of their lives together.

* * *

The grass was still colored red as Zack's body lay in a pool of his own blood, which had long since dried. Decomposition had already started, with several swarms of Pokémon who fed on the dead to further that. After the last few days of this, it no longer resembled a Zangoose anymore.

Suddenly, the sound of leaves rustling and branches bending filled the air before a single figure dropped from the trees. His features were hidden by the dark, even in the few minutes before dawn. Slowly, he walked over to the fallen Zangoose, turning the rotting carcass over with his foot.

As he looked at the body, he heard the sound of movement behind him. Turning around, he saw several other figures walk up to him. They all took one look at the body, before returning their gaze towards the lone figure. He gave them a simple nod, which they nodded in return before leaving, except for the lone figure.

As the sun started to peak out above the horizon, the figure spoke. His voice was like the sound of nails against glass, grating the ears with a harsh noise that could cause them to bleed.

"Aaron Zangoose…Silvia Seviper…you will both pay for your transgression!"

At that very moment, as Aaron and Silvia were making their promise, the mysterious figure made a promise as well, no…a vow. A vow that he would hunt down these two…no matter where they were.

**_End…or is it?_**

* * *

_Tah-dah! Anyway, like I said at the start, I have a surprise in store for you readers. As you may have guessed by the last few paragraphs, I currently have in the works...A SEQUEL!!!! _

_(Cheering)_

_I guess that saying is true: "When one story ends, another begins." Anyway, I have good news and bad news. Good news is that I have pretty much figured out the entire plot , so I won't have any trouble like I did with this one. The bad news is...I seem to have... "misplaced" the first FIVE chapters that I had already written. So now, I have to write them all over again! "What fun!" Grrrrrr... I also have to think of a title, which in my opinion is the hardest part of any story. Besides that, look forward to the sequel in the next few months, and again, THANKS FOR READING AND REVIEWING!_


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